City of Angels
by Merianon
Summary: It's time to cast some light on Lucifer's siblings- and not just Amenadiel and Uriel. You know how it works: In the beginning, blah blah blah... Well, in the beginning there was a family - Him, Her and their archangelic sons. But then He made the angels, and She was not happy. This is a story about the angels and one in particular who kept her family together. S2AU Sporadic Updates
1. The Beginning

**A/N: I'll put the rest at the bottom so this doesn't keep you too long, but fair warning – I never read the comics, and while there's a bit of info from the show, I don't agree with parts of it (for example – there's no way that Amenadiel is the oldest). Point of the matter being that I took a lot of the angel hierarchy in** _ **Lucifer**_ **into my own hands.**

Also, all review responses are at the bottom of the chapter the review was made on.

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 **Disclaimer: I do not own** _ **Lucifer**_ **or any of its characters, and most of the OCs (specifically the angels) are based off of something or other – whether it be a friend in real life or other TV show characters or even books.**

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 **Prologue**

 **The Beginning**

You all know how it works…

In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth – so on and so forth.

You should know that the Host of Heaven was created long before humans were ever even an idea in His mind. And you should also know that the archangels were created before the angels. With Her by His side, they were all a family. She was the Mother, and He was the Father.

It was just them: Him, Her, and their archangels – Michael, Samael, Raphael, and Gabriel.

Then He created another: Amenadiel. And She was fine with this; for though this new angel was not an archangel, he was still Her son. Amenadiel played with his brothers on equal grounds within their home, Heaven.

She was indifferent when He created another one of His new angels. But then He created more and more. She was not happy. She was prideful of Her firstborn, hating to those She did not help create. She became jealous of His love to His other creations over Her.

Earth – _humanity –_ was the last straw.

She secretly took Her anger out on the angels. To Her sons – the archangels and Amenadiel – it only seemed as if She had grown cold and distant, but to the angels – those who were not Her own – She became a tyrant. Her rage ran rampant, yet _still_ He continued to create.

So She went to His favorite son. She voiced Her troubles to Samael, and he listened. With Her twisted truths in his ears, he saw reason in Her words. Samael rebelled and was cast down to Hell, where he would eventually become Lucifer, the Devil. She watched with a horrified look on Her face and a smile behind the mask.

But to Her dismay, this blow (for He loved Samael— _Lucifer_ more than any of Their other children) did nothing to deter Him from creating. Humanity grew, and She continued Her tyranny over the angels. Until one angel had enough. This angel gathered evidence against Her, knowing that He would refuse to believe of such things otherwise. After all, She was His Wife.

Having finally gotten enough evidence after another hundred years, this angel told God of what She was doing, and He believed the angel. However, He couldn't kill Her. The angel suggested doing to Her as She had convinced Him to do to His favorite son. God frowned at the angel's implication, asking what the angel meant. The angel told Him everything; for this angel had known of Her deeds since the angel had overheard Her confessions to Samael.

In the end, She was cast down and locked away in Hell with Lucifer as Her warden.

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 **A/N: Mind you, this is just the prologue… I'm going to put a bunch of author stuff here, so you can either skip this and go on to the first actual chapter or you can read some "important" information about this fic.**

 **If you haven't noticed already, this is my first dip into the waters of this fandom (writing-wise), and I wouldn't mind some** _ **advice**_ **if I get something wrong** **—** **Do note that I've kind of set up my own cannon with this prologue for a bit of background mythology on angels since the show's doesn't connect with me. Though I did take most of Charlotte's (you know, the Mother or Mum… whatever you call her – her/she is going to be capitalized only at certain times for reasons) character background into consideration. Also, this was thought up before the second half of season 2 was aired (so any TV show cannon past 2x10 is kind of chopped liver).**

 **On another note,** _ **Supernatural**_ **fans may notice that I used the archangels as a kind of base line for whom the original family was comprised of – because like I said earlier, I have some issues with _Lucifer_ 's angel hierarchy. And while you won't be actively seeing Michael, Gabriel, or Raphael; they will be mentioned. Anyways, I mentioned earlier that a lot of the OCs are angels, but there's going to a main one and then a few supporting her – yes, **_**her…**_ **And I'm going to go ahead and say that her relationship with Lucifer is** ** _platonic_** **, no funny business.**

 **And though I only have Lucifer and OC as the listed characters of this story** (hahaha, I changed that) **, the rest of the** ** _Lucifer_** **characters will show up (because it's kind of hard to keep them out...) along with the many OCs that I have in mind. That being said, there's definitely going to be some major clashing of the show cannon within the first actual chapter (because this was the prologue, people) as you will see. So quit reading this and move on – swipe left...** ** _Now_** **.**

Last edited: [March 16, 2018]

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 **QuirkCirc:** I can't wait to see where I take this, too!

 **BekaRoo:** I really haven't forgotten you guys. I really haven't. I'm just low on the inspiration for this fic, so forcing myself to write any sort of chapter is like stabbing myself in the brain. School usually helps since writing fanfiction diverts that urge's cause to school related stuff and not fanfiction, which gives some room for me to write whatever the hell I want.

 **Avenage99:** I know you're new. I introduced you to this fandom, lol.


	2. Silver City

**Chapter 1**

 **Silver City**

Heaven was an eternal summer day, staying at a perfect seventy-two degree temperature with several fluffy clouds passing by on a slight breeze in the sky over the Garden. The Garden was at the center of Heaven nowadays, surrounded by the Silver City. It was an unspoken rule that the angels stayed in these two areas and that the humans stayed in their personal heavens unless told otherwise by either the Big Man or one of the archangels (or if it was part of the angel's _job_ ). Even then, only certain angels were stationed specifically in the Garden – His throne room.

Camael was one of these angels. The angel of joy attended to the flowers within the Garden. She wasn't _the_ gardener, but she did keep the flowers happy. However, today was not looking like a good day. She could tell by the way the sky wasn't as bright, the way there were a lot more clouds than usual – though they weren't to the point of being storm clouds. Either way, it wasn't a good sign.

The angel of joy wondered briefly what had happened on Earth to cause Father to be saddened. The last time she had personally looked to see the events taking place on Earth was during the human's Renaissance in the late 1400s. But whatever had happened called for some concern, and Camael decided that the flowers would be okay if she left them for only a little while.

That thought in mind, Camael left the Garden, searching for her older sister, Kemuel. She found the angel of authenticity on a balcony by the Pearly Gates, already looking down at Earth. "What's happened, sister?"

"Lucifer was mortally killed and sent back to Hell," Kemuel answered solemnly. Camael's face fell, but before she could say anything, Kemuel added, "Lucifer may yet still live amongst the humans. He made a deal with Father."

"Do you know what the terms are?" the usually joyous angel asked hopefully.

Kemuel frowned, narrowing her eyes at something down below. "It would seem that Lucifer cares about one of the humans… Enough to do anything Father asks of him if only for the woman to be protected."

Camael gasped. "And has Dad accepted?"

There was a long tense silence before Kemuel spoke. "Dad must have wanted Lucifer to see something first… but yes, little sister," Kemuel said, turning her gaze and giving the other angel a soft smile. "Lucifer has saved the human woman and her child."

Camael let out an excited squeal, jumping with excitement. "Lucifer's in love with a mortal!" she exclaimed. "I can't wait to tell everyone!"

Kemuel caught the smaller angel before she could take off. "Ah-ah-ah," she tsked. "That part stays between you and me for now, Cammie."

Camael huffed but nodded, trusting her older sister to know what was best and flying away before Kemuel could stop her once more. But Kemuel had no intention of stopping her sister as she watched her fly off towards the Silver City. No, once Camael had flown out of sight, Kemuel turned her gaze back down to Earth. "Lucifer, I hope you know what you're doing…"

— **o~O~o** —

Amenadiel had fallen. Kemuel could feel it. She worried for her older brother. He thought himself invincible because he'd grown up with the archangels. And while he was stronger than most angels because he was the first of their kind, he was still only an angel – and even the archangels could be brought low.

Still, Kemuel cared for her brother – arrogant as he may have been – just as she cared for all of her siblings. Just as she always had. It wasn't her 'job' to protect them anymore, but it still happened sometimes.

Netzach may have accidentally broken one of their Father's time pieces, and she would help him fix it. Uriel might get picked on by some of the older boys, and Kemuel would (metaphorically) kick their asses for it and make sure Uriel was alright. Ambriel could be caught off guard and have a panic attack while doing a census of the human souls, and Kemuel would have to calm her down. Kemuel had even snuck down to Earth a few times to get new species of flora for Camael.

Kemuel sighed, still deep in thought. At least she wasn't having to constantly go to Raphael for something to heal injuries anymore. The angels knew to go to the Healer if they needed anything of the sort. Kemuel had made sure that they knew. Raphael was the only one of the archangels that may have a suspicion as to what their _Mother_ was doing aside from Gabriel, who had helped Kemuel more than once with taking care of their younger siblings.

A reminiscent smile crossed her face. The Messenger was almost always busy nowadays, never having any time to stop and say hello anymore. Raphael didn't leave the Healer's Halls if he didn't have to. Michael… Michael was somewhere. And of course, Lucifer had left Hell to have a permanent vacation on Earth.

"Day dreaming about the golden flyboy again?"

Kemuel rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about, Azrael."

"Oh, come on, Kem," the angel of death said, rolling her own dark – _almost black_ – eyes. "Everyone knows you two like each other."

"Someone's been listening to Camael's ramblings too much," Kemuel muttered, moving over so Azrael could lean on the rail beside her.

"Or someone's denying the fact," Azrael countered, taking Kemuel's unspoken offer of companionship within a shared space.

Kemuel scoffed. " _Please_ , as if Gabriel would ever be able to slow down enough to have a relationship with anyone. And that's not even taking into account how awkward it would be."

"I see your point." Azrael shrugged. "But little Cammie completely ships it."

Turning to look at her sister, the older angel blinked and then frowned. "Ship?" she repeated questioningly.

"You know, that new term the teenage humans have come up with for whenever one person couples two others in a romantic relationship…" Azrael explained, making small gestures with her hands. "Or something like that anyway."

"Cammie needs to mind her own business," Kemuel groaned, rubbing a hand down her face.

"You know that'll never happen. With the way she talks to those know-it-all flowers, she's the gossip center of Heaven," the angel of death replied with a chuckle.

"Don't you have soul escorting duties to attend to?" Kemuel grumbled.

"I do, but with no one on the throne or watching Hell's gates, it's a bit chaotic," Azrael said, continuing over Kemuel's _"_ _Hell's always chaotic_ _"_. "I'd rather not have to be down there longer than normal because no one came to collect the souls."

Kemuel huffed. "Knowing demons, one of them will eventually come out on top and bring Hell to order if Lucifer doesn't reclaim the throne."

"And now we know good ol' Satan definitely won't," Azrael exclaimed with a hearty laugh. "There's no way any of us would be able to convince him to go back now."

"Amenadiel might have done it if he hadn't been an ass about it," Kemuel mused, standing up straight to stretch out her wings. _Oh, that felt good._ She'd been getting stiff from leaning on the rail like that for too long.

"Do you think you'd have been able to do it?"

Kemuel let out a scoff, crossing her arms. "I'm not that arrogant."

"But you could have," Azrael pressed.

"Just because I _could_ have, doesn't mean I _would_ have," the angel of authenticity told the angel of death with a long side glance.

The two fell into a comfortable silence as Kemuel turned her gaze back down to Earth. It wasn't like she had anything better to do at the moment. Everything seemed normal – as peaceful as Earth could be. But then something caught Kemuel's eye: an accident involving Chloe Decker, Lucifer's human. That wasn't right. Father wouldn't have allowed that to have happened – He wouldn't have left it up to random chance. Not with His deal with Lucifer in place, even if Lucifer wasn't holding up his end very well. Someone had interfered.

"Rae, where's Uriel?"

"I think I saw him pass by my rooms the other day, but I haven't seen him since— why?" Azrael asked with a frown.

Kemuel let out a frustrated mix between a sigh and a growl. "That little idiot of a brother of ours is on Earth," she answered, pushing back from the railing and taking off to fly towards the Garden.

— **o~O~o** —

One of Kemuel's prized gifts from her Father was her ability to _see_ Him – she could find Him anywhere, anytime as long as she put her mind to it. And He was never in His throne room nowadays. No, Kemuel most often found Him watching the personal heavens of souls, especially those of soulmates.

 **"Kemuel, it's been an age since I last saw you. What is it you need?"**

"Father, I request permission to go to Earth," the angel answered, having already kneeled and bowed her head. She tried to remain focused on the ground beneath her and not melt underneath her Father's loving and warm presence. It really had been a while.

 **"Ah, yes… Uriel has gone there already, no?"**

Kemuel affirmed His inquiry, even though He had known before she had even entered the personal heaven of a poor shoemaker and his loving wife. "I request Your permission to bring him back before… problems arise."

Kemuel strained to keep her eyes from lifting as she heard Him sigh. **"Do try not to get too involved once you get down there, Kemuel. You've done too much for me to lose you on Earth."**

Her eyes snapped up to her Father. "You give me permission so readily, Father?"

 **"It would seem the best laid plans of** _ **all beings**_ **often go astray. Perhaps adding more pieces to the board will even the odds."** Despite His stereotypical cryptic answer, His smile filled her being with a warm feeling indescribable with words alone. **"Oh, and would you deliver a message to Lucifer for me? Gabriel's all tied up in another matter."**

"Of course, Father. What would You have me tell the Morning Star?" Kemuel asked Him, dutifully awaiting the additional order.

But instead of speaking His message for her to convey first, He tilted His head to the side. **"You still care for your brother?"**

She blinked, slightly taken aback by His question, knowing that it was not His message. "I—" She cut herself off, thinking about her answer before speaking once more. "Yes. He is, and will always be, my brother."

Kemuel was a lucky angel to see Him smile twice in one meeting. **"Good. Tell Lucifer this…"**

— **o~O~o** —

Trixie was having a wonderful day despite the car accident her mom was in earlier. Not only had she gotten free chocolate ice cream, but the nice lady she'd met at school had also offered to escort Trixie home when it didn't look like either of Trixie's parents would be able to pick her up from school. While Trixie was sure that her mom would be a bit freaked out by a stranger taking her home, her mom had also said that she was a good judge of character, and Trixie liked this new lady.

"What's your name again?" she asked the lady as they walked away from the ice cream shop. The lady didn't seem to mind Trixie holding her hand or the way Trixie was swinging their laced hands back and forth as they walked.

The lady looked down and gave Trixie a kind smile. "The name given to me by my father is Kemuel."

"You have a funny name, and you talk weird, too— Just like Lucifer," Trixie commented.

"Yes, I suppose my brother does have an odd name," the lady – _Kemuel_ – said with a soft chuckle. "I haven't seen him in ages."

"Lucifer's your brother?" she asked excitedly, but then Trixie frowned, the expression scrunching up her features. "Why haven't you seen him?"

Kemuel was silent for another block, but Trixie knew the look on the lady's face. It was a thinking look. Trixie knew she would get an answer – she just had to wait a little bit. "It's been a long while since I've seen Lucifer because my siblings and I were not allowed to visit him when he was in Hell nor are we usually allowed on Earth unless it's required by our... jobs."

Trixie let out a mini-gasp, leaning closer to whisper, "You're in on it? That Lucifer's actually the Devil?"

The girl could tell that smile Kemuel put on this time was more forced. "Yeah, I'm in on it."

"That's _so cool_." And then Trixie saw the building where she, her mom and Maze were living in. "Come on! We're home," she exclaimed, dragging Kemuel by the hand into the house.

Kemuel tensed, her grip on Trixie's hand tightening slightly, as she took in the living space around them. "You live with a demon..."

"You mean Maze," Trixie corrected her, moving into the kitchen area. "She's cool, too. She's my friend."

"Do you have many friends, Trixie?" Kemuel asked, still looking around the house as she followed Trixie – having relaxed a bit at the child's reassurance.

Trixie shrugged. "I have a few." Her eyes widened. "You can be one of my friends!"

Kemuel looked away from the TV to her. "I've yet to have had a human friend."

"Well, you have me now," Trixie said, nodding her head as if that made it official. Sitting down on a stool, she then planted her elbows on the counter, propping her head up on her fisted hands. "So what are you?"

"That depends on what you mean," Kemuel deflected, peering into one of the many cabinets in the kitchen.

"You said that Lucifer's your brother, and he says that he's the Devil… so what are you?"

Kemuel turned back to the girl, an eyebrow raised at the girl's insightful inquiry. "Some people forget that Lucifer was originally an angel—"

"So you're an angel, then?" Trixie interrupted, a smile suddenly on her face as she jumped up to hug Kemuel, wrapping her arms around the lady's waist. "Awesome!"

"You know, you remind me of one of my younger siblings," Kemuel muttered, returning the embrace. "And you're taking this remarkably well."

"Well," Trixie started, detaching herself from the angel, "despite what _Mommy_ says about Lucifer not really being the Devil, there's a lot of _evidence_ that says he is, but Mommy's just ignoring it."

"Ah," Kemuel huffed with a blink. "I take it you're smarter than most your age."

"Daddy tells me that a lot," the eight-year-old replied, giving the angel a smile that showed all of her teeth.

"Say, would you know how to find the location of a certain church if I gave you the address?"

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer rolled off of his back and took a steadying breath. Looking up, he saw Maze get knocked out by Uriel near the piano with the key that would start some chain reaction resulting in Chloe's death. He spotted Azrael's blade only a few feet away from him – the blade having been knocked out of Uriel's hands not moments ago by Maze's work.

It was when he picked up the blade, ready to charge at his brother with it, that Lucifer heard the sound of wings underneath Uriel's talking. Pausing, Lucifer's eyes snapped over to the source of the sound, landing on someone he had never expected to see again.

Her imposing figure stood several feet away from Uriel, arms crossed and very obviously unhappy. The way she stood with the broken window behind her cast a silhouette over her figure, hiding the front of her form in shadow, but Lucifer could see her violet eyes as she let her true form bleed through.

Even so, it was her wings that Lucifer was staring at. He'd forgotten how marvelous her wings were. Though they would never have been as beautiful as his, her wings had always been considered the most beautiful out of all of her generation. White wings that had purple accents trailing up from the wingtips, fading into the lighter shades of lavender and then lilac to blend with the white near the base of her wings where they met the shoulder blades on the back of her body.

"Just what do you think you're doing, Uriel?" her voice rang out, echoing in the abandoned church.

The youngest angel in the room had frozen in place when he heard her land, but now he turned to face his older sister. "I'm protecting Dad," he answered stiffly.

"And that requires killing a human?" she asked, eyes flashing brighter for a moment as she tilted her head to the side. "Guess who got sent to bring you home when Dad found out you weren't where you're supposed to be."

"Sister—" Uriel started, taking a step forward to plead his case.

"Father requests that you come home, Uriel…" He didn't move. " _Now_."

A shiver ran down Lucifer's spine when her eyes reached a peak of their brightness, her wings expanding in a more aggressive, dominating position. Lucifer felt a smidge of sympathy for Uriel in that moment.

Seeming to wilt under her glare, Uriel had inclined his head, shooting a glace to Lucifer. "What about him?"

She shot her own glance at Lucifer, who dared to meet her gaze. "What I do with our brother doesn't concern you… And Uriel," she called to him before he could leave. She waved her hand, telekinetically taking the blade from Lucifer's grasp and directing it into Uriel's hands. "Make sure you apologize to Azrael for taking her blade without permission when you give that back to her."

Uriel gave her a sharp nod and flew off. _Well,_ Lucifer thought to himself, _that's one crisis averted._

"Thank you for not interrupting." Her voice was softer now, less that of a scolding older sibling – not that she was Lucifer's elder.

He took note that she had put her wings away, her eyes no longer radiating power. She could have passed for a normal human woman in her early twenties at the most, eighteen in the very least. The white jacket she was sporting practically glowed in the moonlight, illuminating her figure now that her wings weren't casting shadows over her.

"It was the least I could do since you were sending Uriel packing back home," Lucifer replied with a sniff.

Though a shadow still covered half of her face, he saw the smile that she wore on the other half. Her chocolate brown eyes twinkled with a familiar shine. "I thought you'd insert at least one witty comment."

"Well, you know me," Lucifer said with a dazzling smile, throwing his arms out for a bit of flare. "Always one to put a bit of life into the family reunions."

She looked down to hide her growing smile, her curled, wavy hair bouncing lightly on her shoulders. Her hair, which looked darker than normal in the lesser lighting, moved even more as she shook her head. "It's been a long time, Lucifer," she whispered, though it resounded louder than any of her other words.

"Not since Hell," he affirmed, matching her somber tone. "I should probably thank you for that by the way—"

"No, no— it's fine," she started, cutting him off before he cut her off in return to continue.

"You _disobeyed Dad_ to come see me down there," Lucifer insisted. "I think that's more than enough reason for me to be thanking you. If anything I should owe you a favor…"

She looked up towards the ceiling – towards Heaven – her pale complexion looking almost white in the lighting. "Dad knew about it, so I really don't see why you're thanking me."

"He knew?" She looked back down at him, taking in his shuttered expression, and nodded. "And He knew about this, too?"

"It is why I'm here, Luce."

The snappish retort died on his tongue at the nickname. He frowned at the new look on her face. He stepped forward, pointing a finger at her. "You— Before you came here, you saw Him…"

"I did."

" _Well?!_ " Lucifer shouted, emotional rage getting the better of him. "What did He _want_?! And it better be a bloody clear message because I am _sick_ and _tired_ of not knowing what the hell He wants!"

If it didn't mean that he wouldn't get his message if he ripped that pitying smile off her face, Lucifer would have done so. He didn't need her sympathies – not anymore. Not after thousands of years without seeing her again.

She wet her lips, taking a steeling breath as she readied herself to deliver His message to His favorite son.

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 **A/N: As random as it seemed, I promise you that Kemuel's moment with Trixie will be important later on. I also feel like Trixie would be more willing to accept the whole 'Lucifer is the Devil thing' – after all, she is a child, and children have 'wild' imaginations – which would make her liable and open to believing Kemuel when she said she's an angel. Anyway, introducing characters shall be the theme of these first chapters… as it is the exposition.**

Last edited: [March 16, 2018]

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 **LuciferFan:** Eh, you'll find out as we go along. It's kind of a 'read in between the lines' thing though.

 **Lami:** But cliffhangers are so much fun XD

 **QuirkCirc:** With the way she's written in the show and here, there's no way Trixie would be against the angels and demon stuff. I should think I've done my research; I didn't make (and then have to remake) a whole table/chart of angels I could bring up in this fic for nothing. (And be careful with that auto-correct, lol)


	3. Many Siblings

**Chapter 2**

 **Many Siblings**

Lucifer returned to Lux with a solemn face. The trip up the elevator was long and deafeningly silent. He still had cuts and bruises from the fight with Uriel. And while he was relieved he'd been stopped from having to kill his brother, other matters pressed down hard on his mind.

His ascent slowed to a stop, and he flicked his eyes up from the elevator floor as the doors opened with a soft _ding_. Stepping into the entrance area of his penthouse apartment, he kept his face a blank mask. Mum stood near the couches, having gotten up when she heard the elevator's arrival. Of course his mother had been waiting.

Lucifer stared at her, swallowing any lingering emotions about what happened before walking past her to his bedroom. He looked down at her fallen expression, but he just didn't feel up for a mother-son talk. For now, he just wanted to be alone.

— **o~O~o** —

Camael sighed, pursing her lips. Her crystal pink eyes were tracking the back and forth pacing Kemuel was doing, the angel of authenticity's steps wearing a path into the grass of the garden (not _the_ Garden but a garden in the Silver City nonetheless). Meanwhile, Uriel stood sheepishly off to the side – out of the way of their older sister.

"That was beyond reckless, Uriel," Kemuel fumed, turning on her heel to begin striding the other way. "I understand your want to deal with _Mom_ , but endangering the lives of the humans—" she stopped, pointing a finger at him "—that was stupid, little brother."

"I wasn't going to actually kill—"

"Don't you dare interrupt me," she told him – voice dangerously low as she cut him off, stalking up to poke him in the chest and making him take a step back. " _You_ almost got yourself obliterated. Not dead— destroyed, _gone forever_."

Uriel was graceful enough to look down, ashamed. "I'm sorry."

Kemuel let out a long sigh, closing her eyes while running a hand through her hair. "Come 'ere," she said, pulling him into a hug.

"Glad that's over," Camael piped up cheerfully.

At Kemuel's gesturing hand, calling her over, Camael joined the hug. The female angels both let out their own laughs as Uriel made a rather un-angelic _oof_ at being squished between the two, though he made no other noise of protest. Still, he did mutter, "I knew that was coming."

Camael saw the smile on Kemuel's face turn solemn, and it made Camael frown. The question in her eyes was answered when Kemuel suddenly spoke in a soft voice.

"As much as I know you want to, don't go after Her again, Uri."

"And Lucifer?" he asked in a similar tone.

"We'll see, little brother… We will see."

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer was wasted – trying to be anyway. Drink after drink he downed. Pulling them from his guests, ordering them from the bar, it didn't matter as long as he kept the buzz over his mind. As long as he was kept from thinking about… _those things…_

"Lucifer!"

He spun to his right, catching the sight of one Dr. Linda Martin. "Doctor!" he exclaimed, pointing at her and letting out a loud _whoop_ of excitement, which caused her to lean back at his ruckus. "Come to join the party?"

"No, I'm here to check on you," she corrected. "You didn't show for our session."

"Yeah, I know. I canceled that," Lucifer pointed out, drinking a martini while she'd talked.

"Yeah, which is odd because you never cancel. Is every thing okay?" she asked.

"It's fine," he brushed off, noting the concern in her voice. "Just a little family drama, that's all— nothing to worry about."

She stared at him. "Family drama?"

"Mmm," he answered through a mouthful of liquor. Setting down the glass, he swallowed and answered. "Another of my brothers came to town— nasty fight. She had to intervene before we killed one another."

 _Careful,_ part of himself warned him. _That was a little too close to home…_

"She? And you have another brother?" Linda asked, trying to keep up.

"Yes, both younger siblings," he said, leaning forward. " _I have many._ "

"Lucifer, if you've been caught up in something—" she started, stepping forward and warily eyeing the shot glasses he quickly downed. "Lucifer," she tried again, "patients often avoid sessions precisely when they need it the most. When the feelings are too painful. Are you sure you don't need to talk?"

"Well, I think there's a few other things I'd rather do, you know," Lucifer murmured, leaning in once more before she pushed him back – telling him 'no' several times before getting back to the matter at hand.

"No, we're not doing that anymore, and you know that," she told him, ignoring his scoff and breathing a little easier as he stood back up. "Now, I'm here if you want to talk about your family's problems, but in a… in an appropriate manner—'"

"Oh, what's the point," he exclaimed. "You wouldn't understand me anyway. You think everything I say is a metaphor. Now if you don't mind, you're killing my buzz… Ladies," he called their attention, passing them several shots of liquor.

Linda backed off a little. "Well, if you change your mind, my door is always open."

Lucifer turned back to his therapist, suddenly very serious. "Well, feel free to shut it."

— **o~O~o** —

"Hmm… I know that face. Lemme guess— Lucifer's done something, hasn't he?"

Kemuel held back a sigh, turning to face her new company. "Zadkiel, shouldn't you be watching over the young ones?"

Her brother hummed a note, the resonance of it making the sound ring within the courtyard. He met her gaze, stepping close enough to be considered within her personal space. "You know," he said, leaning to whisper in her ear. "They may all be _our_ younger siblings, but you're the elder _we_ look up to."

"Don't let them hear you say that," she murmured back, gently pushing him away.

"And what would they hear? Nothing but the truth— Besides, Lucifer and Amenadiel are off playing house; Michael and Raphael wouldn't care, and Gabriel's never around to hear anything," he pointed out, crossing his arms and resting his back on the wall. "Which leaves you as the oldest…"

She rolled her eyes and gave him a look. "Don't count yourself out, Zad. You're next in line for that title if something were to happen to me."

"Well, if something did happen, we'd all be royally screwed because then we wouldn't have anyone here to keep Dad from forgiving that manipulative, lying bitch—"

" _Zadkiel_ , language!"

"—that calls herself our mother," he continued over Kemuel's scolding. His forest green eyes looked down at her, and her own eyes softened at his concerned gaze. "You might believe that He'd never forgive Her, but the rest of us don't share that feeling."

Kemuel let out the breath she'd been holding. She placed her hands on the bend of Zadkiel's elbows. "For angels, we certainly don't have that much faith, do we?"

"It's not that we don't believe in Him. It's that we don't trust Him with _Her_ ," he reiterated.

"Then trust me," she said gently, giving him a small smile. "Just like last time."

"You know we do, Kemuel," he replied, moving to take her hands in his and mirroring her smile with one of his own.

"Lucifer's had a kind of mental shutdown," Kemuel said suddenly.

Zadkiel blinked, frowning in his mild confusion. "What?"

"You asked what he'd done earlier," she spelled out. "He hasn't been taking Father's message that well, which doesn't make much sense to me."

He pulled away, moving further out into the courtyard, and Kemuel followed him as he walked over to and then through one of the courtyard's exits. "You have to admit, Dad's messages are usually pretty cryptic and almost never get the best of reactions."

"If you knew what the message had been, you'd have thought Lucifer would have been ecstatic about it," Kemuel muttered.

"Now, I know that I shouldn't pry – privacy matters an' all – but I have to ask: what did you say to him?"

Kemuel raised an eyebrow at his not-so-subtle rhetorical question. "It might have actually been my fault, but it shouldn't have pushed him at lash out like this."

"And 'this' is?" Zadkiel asked, glancing over to her.

She let out a frustrated huff. "Lucifer's a complete mess," she complained. "For _some reason_ , he's acting as if he wants to have Father take back what He had me tell him. He punched Daniel Espinoza in the face, for Heaven's sake!"

"Now, now, Kem— let's not bring home into this," he said heartily with a short laugh. "I take it that's what you've been doing by the Gates this whole time— watching him, brooding over whether or not to go back down to Earth and beat some sense into our big brother."

"I don't brood."

Zadkiel smirked at her. "Of course you do," he exclaimed, running and jumping off the balcony that they'd come to, only to shoot up from the dive and soar high into Heaven's skies on his honey brown, orange licked wings.

Kemuel rolled her eyes. "Show off," she muttered before spreading her own wings and taking off – not after him but once again headed to her Father.

— **o~O~o** —

She found Him in a different heaven than last time. He was sitting in a quaint, little café that had originally been built in Paris, France. The heaven's occupant – the owner of the café – was behind the counter, chatting with her soulmate, who leaned against the granite top.

 **"Twice in less than a week… Something tells me there's a specific reason you want to visit Earth again, Kemuel,"** He greeted without looking at her.

Kemuel made sure her bow was low enough before glancing up at Him. "I fear Lucifer may do something… drastic."

He hummed a note to Himself, tilting His head to the side. **"There has been a disturbance,"** He mused softly.

"Do You wish for me to correct it?"

 **"It is not something that can be corrected by another,"** He said, still gazing at the couple. **"Amenadiel has lost his faith in me. He has sided with Her."**

Kemuel let out a small gasp. Yes, she had seen Amenadiel with _Charlotte Richards_ more often than she'd liked, but to be with Her now? Amenadiel hadn't ever truly been told what She'd done, but surely he wouldn't have lost sight of their Father.

 **"Go to Earth, Kemuel. I do believe a test is in order, and see that Lucifer doesn't get himself hurt."**

With a swift nod, Kemuel stood. "Of course, Father."

Before she left, she heard Him add, **"Take care of yourself as well."**

 **-o~O~o-**

Trixie stared up at Maze's face – one half looking normal, the other half rotten and decomposed. " _Cool!_ "

Maze exhaled a nervous, relieved breath as Trixie smiled, exclaiming about the loads of candy that they would get. And then the girl turned to look out across the street. Maze stopped in her tracks.

"Kemuel," Trixie called out to the angel, waving with the hand that held her bag of candy.

Maze continued to have a stare down with the angel – Kemuel – until she looked down and gave a small smile to Trixie. Within a blink of an eye, Kemuel was by their sides.

"Love the outfit," she commented, going on as if she wasn't standing next to a demon like Maze.

"Don't you have a costume, too?" the eight-year-old asked, pulling out her puppy eyes.

Kemuel smiled. "Do a little spin to show off that suit of yours, and I'll show you mine."

Trixie gleefully spun in a small circle, still holding Maze's hand. When she came back around, her eyes widened. "Is that a halo?" she asked excitedly. "Awesome!"

"What are you doing here, angel?" Maze questioned, crossing her arms and rounding on Kemuel as soon as Trixie ran up to the next house.

Kemuel met her demanding gaze calmly. "I could ask the same of you, demon," she responded, matching Maze's tone. "It's not every day that I find a creature such as yourself taking a human child trick-or-treating… or at all for that matter."

"That has nothing to do with you," Maze shot back, bristling. "I'm doing a favor for her mother."

"It seems that Lucifer isn't the only one that's become attached to this family," Kemuel mused.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the demon growled.

The angel gave her a smile, which only irritated the demon even more. "Nothing— at the moment." She turned her attention to Trixie, who was now coming back to join them. "Is your basket meant to be only half-filled?"

Trixie shook her head, hiding a shy smile and stifling a laugh at the silly question. Kemuel took the basket in one hand, holding Trixie's hand with the other. Maze took post on the girl's other side.

"Fortunately for the both of you, I happen to know where several child-friendly neighborhoods are…" Kemuel glanced over to Maze, who was still watching her suspiciously. "I think we can still get to them before nightfall."

— **o~O~o** —

Kemuel looked over to the pair that had fallen asleep on the couch while watching a horror movie and then to the clock on the wall. The angel still wasn't sure what it was that had Lucifer attached to Chloe Decker, but she hoped to find out through the child. Kemuel understood why the demon liked the girl now, though.

Trixie had accepted Mazikeen – who had shown the child her true face. They were… friends. Kemuel wasn't on the demon's good side, but she wasn't on Maze's kill list either. That might have been different if Kemuel hadn't been a friend to Trixie as well.

Kemuel smiled. The girl had seen Kemuel's 'halo' and smiled. Sure, the halo had merely been a manipulation of light, but she had _seen_ it (unlike some of the other human participants in the trick-or-treating ordeal). It was a sign on the girl's purity. Perhaps not purity of mind or body – _innocence_ – but more purity of heart – _goodness_.

It made Kemuel wonder if that was due to influence on the part of the girl's mother. It would have made sense.

The angel finished touching up the icing on the double-layer chocolate cake she'd made – a surprise for Trixie when she woke up. Kemuel made sure she'd cleaned everything up (except for the evidence left behind by Trixie's sugar high), and then with one last look at the clock, she left the Deckers' home.

"There you are!" a voice greeted from behind her as she landed. "I was wondering when you'd show up. I'll tell you now, it was a pain to dig that stupid hole. Why did you even have me dig a fake grave in the middle of nowhere?" Azrael complained, leaning on the long handle of the shovel.

"Because our dear mother thinks that Uriel is dead," Kemuel replied, nodding her head to return the greeting. "And Father thinks its time for a test."

Azrael paused, dark eyes looking over to Kemuel through a curtain of equally dark hair. "Which involves?"

"This grave, your blade, a fake body that looks like Uriel's, a map to this place, and Lucifer's partial cooperation."

"Like that's going to happen with the way he's been on a rampage since you talked to him," the angel of death scoffed.

"Thank you so much for the reminder," Kemuel deadpanned.

Azrael shot Kemuel a look. "It's not my fault that big brother is – and excuse the pun – stubborn as hell. Besides, if he's part of this test, then he'll get involved one way or another."

"That's what worries me," the angel of authenticity admitted, stopping in her work. "He's hurting right now, Rae, and I don't know if this is the best thing for him."

"Well, it's not really up to us, is it?" When that semi-assurance didn't do anything, the younger angel tried a different approach. "Hey, Dad knows that you care. Because you do— _a lot_. It's in your nature as our big sister, even if Lucifer's technically older than you." Azrael let out a sigh. "Just don't get too caught up in this, Kem. I get that you're protecting all of us from Mom, but… be careful."

Kemuel smiled softly at her sister. "First Zadkiel, now you… It's almost as if you're all trying to look out for _me_ now."

"Maybe we are," Azrael said with a mischievous smirk, white teeth flashing in the moonlight in a stark contrast against her dark brown skin. She jumped down into the fake grave and pulled out her blade. "Man, I'm gonna miss you."

"There, there, Rae— it's only until the test is over, and then you can see your precious blade again. Don't forget to give it a kiss goodnight," Kemuel teased.

"Oh, shut it. I just hope you and Dad know what you're doing, letting this bad boy loose on Earth," she replied, gingerly setting the blade down on top of the fake body that had been created just for this occasion.

Kemuel helped the angel of death step up out of the grave. "Well, if Uriel's predictions go as planned, then you'll have it back before it gets ten people killed."

"Well, if Uriel's predictions go as planned, we should be home in time to watch the dominoes fall," Azrael mimicked.

"Don't be mean," Kemuel chided her. "You can go home now anyways— I just have one or two more things to do, and I'll see you in a bit."

"Right, because you're _not_ going to stay down here to watch it all play out. Okay, I got it. I'll tell Zad that you'll be late for dinner," Azrael bit out.

"It's not like that, Az—" But the angel of death was already gone. "Great…"

And now Kemuel had to refill this fake grave by herself. Next, she'd have to make sure there was a trail leading here to make it easy enough to find. Then, the angel would have to secretly drop off a map to the site somewhere in Lucifer's penthouse where he'd find it and hopefully lead their dear mother there. Plus, Trixie and Maze weren't going to eat that chocolate cake all by themselves— (In reality, Kemuel would probably have to make another one…) Not to mention that she still had to go find Lucifer.

And this was all by herself. Just great.

At least after several more brief interactions with Maze, Kemuel had asked where she might find Lucifer. A short – _not completely accurate_ – explanation later and Kemuel had been given the location of one Dr. Martin. Now that she was done with the grave, Kemuel would have to wait for Lucifer to show up at the therapist's office, but at least then she wouldn't be late…

Or maybe she already was.

Kemuel cursed in Latin, Hebrew and English. Taking a deep breath and collecting herself, Kemuel revealed her presence to the therapist. "Dr. Martin," she called softly to the woman sitting in the chair, staring blankly at the wall.

"Dr. Martin," she repeated, placing her hands on the sides of the woman's face when she was close enough. "Linda, look at me… please."

"It's real— it's all real," she finally responded weakly.

"That would be correct, doctor," Kemuel told her. "I'm afraid you were on the receiving end of seeing Lucifer's true face."

Linda's face began to fall into a frown. "I— I asked him to show me… I— You know him?"

Kemuel smiled at the doctor's sudden change in train of thought. The distraction was good. It would help her get through the shock. Afterwards was another matter.

"It's okay, Linda. I'm going to make sure of that," she assured the struggling woman.

"Wh-What are you going to do?"

Kemuel let healing energies wash over the human. "I'm going to help you."

* * *

 **A/N: I apologize for the wait – I don't usually take a whole week (it was a busy week, mind you** **– if you're that curious, you can read it on my profile)… I'll have you all know that I had to psych myself into even posting this story, and the reception has been great. It's nice to know there's another great fandom out there. And the ending to latest episode (2x10) changes nothing – okay, it gives me another element to work with… but still… Whatever, see ya'll next time.**

Last edited: [March 16, 2018]


	4. Hell Bound

**Precursor Note: Just so no one gets confused, the major** ** _italicized_** **sections are memories/flashbacks.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

 **Hell Bound**

The night was cold and dark. With the moon hidden behind the clouds, the stars did not shine, did not let their light touch the Earth. The frigid temperatures sank their claws deep into the ground – the beginning signs of winter. A brisk breeze swept past the man walking home.

But this was no man, and this breeze was not caused by natural forces.

Lucifer stopped, glaring at the being in front of him. He let his true form bleed through, his eyes flashing their hellfire red. He knew it wouldn't scare her – not when she'd seen that form many times before. It wouldn't scare her like it had Linda Martin.

He continued to glare at her for another moment before striding past her when she didn't say anything. He didn't want to see the disappointed look on her face. He didn't want to feel the guilt and anger that welled in his being to battle against each other when she looked at him like that. He didn't want to see her. He didn't want to remember the memories that came with her presence.

"You can't keep running from this, Luce."

Her voice came with the sound of choirs behind it. A ringing resplendence that he hadn't heard in ages. He knew that if he turned to look at her, he would see her _face –_ not the human form she'd taken but the one of the embodiment of her true being. He wondered if she knew she was taking a dangerous risk, doing such a thing on Earth in plain view for any human to see. A part of him realized that she knew but didn't care.

Lucifer spun on his heel, jabbing a finger out to point at her. "And why should I stop? Huh? _Why?"_

Her face was light – all that was heavenly and divine. It wasn't burned or scarred from the flames of Hell. Her eyes, their light violet color, were kinder than the last time he'd seen them when she had been scolding Uriel. The chocolate colored hair – now a glowing auburn – flowed past her shoulders, contrasting against her pale white skin. The soft, snowy feathers of her wings and the purple accents that decorated them completed the image.

"You're destroying yourself, doing this," she said softly – caringly.

"Stop it!" Lucifer yelled at her, his hand cutting through the air to come back to his side. "Stop _caring_ about me!"

She closed her eyes for a brief moment, shaking her head, before returning her violet gaze back onto him. "You're my brother, Lucifer… I'm always going to care."

"Yeah, well, the rest of my _brothers_ and _sisters_ make what _they_ think very clear," he shot back in a scathing tone. "Amenadiel certainly made it blatantly obvious."

"You base that assumption on only what you've seen from Amenadiel," she observed, raising a hand to stop him before he could interrupt. "You can't add Uriel into that part of the equation. He wasn't trying to hurt you."

"He _used_ me to get to Mum," Lucifer seethed.

"And you wouldn't have?" she asked, turning the accusation back on him. "Besides, pressing that piano key wouldn't have resulted in killing your human friend either way— there are too many instances in which one could have that path changed within the two day time-frame for it to have been absolute."

Lucifer scoffed, a scowl marring his features. "You would know that."

"I would," she affirmed, raising a perfect eyebrow, "because I asked Uriel myself..." Her head tilted to the side, violet eyes narrowing at him. "You never told them he was sent home."

Lucifer held her demanding gaze before he had to look away. The memories were starting to come back, and he couldn't deal with them right now. He doubted he'd even be able to get back to Lux before they came crashing back.

"No," he admitted quietly, anger draining right out of him. "No, I didn't."

He didn't dare look into her eyes, keeping his gaze focused anywhere but there. If he did, he would see the unspoken question in her eyes: why?

 _The air burned his lungs. Ash and dust fell from the sky. The roaring fires were the only sources of light in this forsaken place. He was on his back – his eyes staring blankly upwards._

 _"Samael?" a voice called from somewhere distant._

 _He blinked. He knew that voice._

 _"Samael?" she called again, closer this time. "Please, brother... I know you're here..."_

 _She sounded desperate but hopeful. He didn't understand why she was here – in Hell of all places._ She should have stayed in Heaven _, a cruel thought echoed in his mind._

 _He could feel her presence gradually coming closer. He debated trying to scare her off. He was sure she had yet to see the burns that had disfigured his form. Perhaps the sight would get her to go home._

 _"Sami," he heard her gasp._

 _He slowly turned his gaze to his right, rolling his head to face her. She stood there, hands covering her mouth in shock (and maybe even horror) as she stared. But she didn't flee as he first thought she might. Instead she came closer, falling to her knees on the ground beside him._

 _"Sami, I'm so sorry," she choked out with a sob. Sparkling tears dripped from her chin, landing on him in quiet drops. "I— I should have warned you— I should have told you—"_

 _"You shouldn't be here," he interrupted her. His voice was rough and gravelly – from disuse or perhaps the air he breathed, he wasn't sure… probably both._

 _"Neither should you," she sniffled. "Father was too harsh. Neither of you know the whole story—"_

 _"What do you know?" he hissed at her. "I rebelled! What else would He have done?"_

 _She bit her bottom lip but didn't answer. Just as he'd thought. He told her to leave. She did, and he was left in darkness._

Lucifer huffed and, with a sharp turn, started heading back to Lux once more. He didn't hear her trying to follow him. Good.

"I'm not done, Lucifer."

He would never admit to anyone that he practically jumped out of his skin when she said that, suddenly walking beside him – her true form masked behind the human one once more. It didn't take him long to collect himself to round on her.

"What could you possibly want?" he demanded.

"I need you to trust me," she said simply.

"Trust you?" he repeated, scoffing. He refused to look at her as he kept walking forward, determined to get back to Lux before dawn. "Look where I ended up last time I trusted you!"

If he'd been looking at her, he would have seen the frown on her face. "The last time you trusted me, you chose your name and had your wings restored—"

 _She had come with Him to lock Her away. He had watched the whole process – dragging Her into the cell and sealing it with sigils and wards designed to act against Her and suppress Her powers – from afar. She had pulled Him aside before He left, words being whispered between them. And then when He left, she had gone as well._

 _But she came back._

 _He felt her – a bright and holy light that shone in this dark place – as she sought him out. She had smartly avoided the twisted souls that he tormented, and she actively stayed away from the newly created denizens that had been born from these souls' suffering._

 _She approached him when he was alone – away from the screaming souls and cackling demons._ _"Sam—"_

 _"_ Don't _call me that," he snapped. The temperature of the area spiked as his temper flared. Fire licked the edges of the tunnel they stood in. To his_ _reli—_ surprise _, she didn't back away. There was only a brief shock that came over her features at his erratic release of power – she hadn't been scared._

 _"I—_ _What should I call you by then, brother?"_

 _He was about to yell at her for calling him that, too. He was not Samael. Not anymore. That was a being that had gone insane within the confines of Hell – a being locked away in the recesses of his mind, and_ he _was what was left. And_ he _refused to have any labels associated to his brothers and sisters who had done nothing but stand and watch as he was cast down. All but her._

 _"Hell looks... nicer," she commented when the flames of his earlier snap died away and the silence between them had lasted longer than was comfortable._

 _He raised an eyebrow. "Hell's not supposed to be_ nice _at all," he told her. "Why did you come back here?"_

 _"I wanted to see how my big brother was doing... You've brightened the place up since I last saw it," she answered, glancing off to the side where there was a clear view of the tortured souls and braizers of hellfire._

 _"Light bringer," he muttered quietly to himself._

 _Still, she heard it. "Lucifer?"_

 _He smiled._ Morning Star _... He liked it. "You may call me that." Then he saw her frown – her eyes looking past him. "What?"_

 _"Your wings..." she whispered sadly. "They haven't healed yet..."_

 _"No, they haven't," he affirmed. He took a step back when she was suddenly barely an inch from him. "What are_ _you—"_

 _She was behind him now – both hands on the middle of his back in the space between his broken wings. "I know this can be... out of place,_ _but—_ _do you trust me?"_

 _He was frozen in place. What was she doing?! "Why?"_

 _"Because I want to help you, Luce."_

 _He could feel the warm and comforting energies focused in her hands on his back. He could feel the quiet grace of the energies, holding a promise of healing but also a question for permission. At his nod, she ran her hands over and down his wings, and he was struck with a euphoric bliss and an insurmountable pain._

"—and this is where you ended up. Here, on Earth. I think it's all turned out rather well."

"You left!" Lucifer exclaimed, suddenly stopping to look at her. "You kept coming back— You kept _helping_ me, and then one day you just stopped! I trusted you to come back, _and you betrayed that trust_."

She had stopped with him. She hadn't tried to break free of his grip when he grabbed her by the shoulders, nor had she scowled in anger when he shook her. She simply waited for him to stop and calm down – just as she had whenever he'd lost his temper in Hell.

"I— _it_ had to stop, Lucifer," she told him, looking him dead in the eyes. "I wasn't allowed to go back after—"

"You said He knew," he growled.

"Hell was supposed to both a punishment and a gift. A punishment for rebelling against Him, and a chance for you to be yourself— to remake yourself as you wanted to be…" she explained. "I was only supposed to help start you on that path, and I did— and I _had_ to leave when I was done."

Lucifer let his arms drop back down to his sides, taking a step back. He brought his head down in a slow nod. "Right… because He _wants_ me to be _happy!_ " he sneered.

"That is _all_ He has _ever_ wanted, Lucifer!" she shouted, matching his tone for once. She had the literal patience of an angel, but even angels could lose their tempers.

 _"So? How's the newfound trick working out?" she asked him, standing on her tiptoes to look over his shoulder._

 _"It's not newfound, sis… I just never got to use it up there," Lucifer informed her. He turned back to the damned soul on the rack in front of them. "Tell me, you poor sap, what did you desire more than anything in life?"_

 _She frowned at the display, though she knew this was what most likely what happened on an hourly basis whenever she wasn't in Hell. She knew that Lucifer dialed down all of the major torture and gore, fire and brimstone – the stereotypical aspects of Hell – and even kept the demons away when she… visited._

 _Still, if punishing the wicked souls of Hell was what made him who he was now, she wouldn't hold it against Lucifer. He was well on his way to finding… happiness. So far she had only seen two other angels find the actual thing through love, but they had been killed before it ever amounted to anything more than a bond._

 _It was something only she, God, and the remaining archangels in Heaven knew – something He wanted to keep only amongst them until the proper time. And she would wait until then to come clean with everything to her other siblings. She would wait until the end of time if she had to._

Lucifer raced back to Lux now. He was done with listening to her. He didn't care that because she was the angel of authenticity all she could be with her intentions was sincere. He didn't care that she was speaking for their Father.

So what if her words hit more at home than he would care to admit? So what if her words scared him more than when he realized he'd almost killed a brother— And to think that he'd kept that fact to himself! What would Mum have thought, seeing him come back to Lux covered in blood? She probably thought he'd actually killed Uriel.

So why hadn't Lucifer told her what happened yet? He didn't know. He just _didn't know_ anymore!

When Lucifer finally made it back to his penthouse, he went straight to the balcony. Leaning on the glass railing, he looked up at the cloudy night sky. "Is this what you really want?" he whispered brokenly, knowing he would not receive an answer.

— **o~O~o** —

The angel landed softly, not disturbing a single item within the living area. Quietly, her feet padded across the tiled floor, and she looked into his bedroom for only a long moment before placing the directions on the counter top of the bar. Letting out a silent sigh, the angel made her way back to the entrance of his room, her shadow falling only to the edge of his bed where he slept peacefully – well, as peacefully as he could with the events of the last few days weighing down on him.

"She's got her claws in him… I could see them," her voice whispered under her breath.

 **"And yet he has even less motivation to side with Her than his brother."**

She blinked, stepping forward into the room – her shadow, merely a shade in the already darkened room, creeping further up the bed. "Uriel says that there are still possibilities for Lucifer to side with Her."

 **"Those potential futures only occur when he loses what he loves most."**

"I assume You'll leave me to discover what that is myself." She then frowned, coming to a stop only a foot away from the bed. "Is there anyway for Amenadiel to come home again?" she asked just as silently as before.

 **"He will find his own path… as must all who fall from grace."**

A soft smile played on her lips as she watched Lucifer sleep. "Sometimes they just need a little nudge in the right direction."

 _She gave Lucifer a small – albeit a touch forced – smile. That smile stayed on her face even as he continued to punish the murderous pedophile. Though Lucifer's punishment for the man was a little excessive in her opinion, she could find respite in that the children, whose lives had been desecrated by this man, were in Heaven. The only reason it was Lucifer personally seeing to the man's torture was because she had brought it up – her words betraying her true emotions behind her mentioning. It hadn't taken Lucifer long to find the man's soul and begin his work._

 _Originally, she had only come to see how he was doing… one last time before she had to go. God had told her not to get too attached when she first asked, and just before she came here – five hundred and thirty-seven years later, her eighth and final visit – He told her that her work was done for now._

 _She now understood why He had warned her about getting attached. There was this horrible, gnawing feeling in her stomach that she couldn't seem to get rid of. She had to leave, stay in Heaven… and Lucifer would have to remain in Hell._

 _Hell was not a nice place, even for the ruler of the forsaken domain. She had seen Lucifer's throne – made of things she'd rather not identify – and the fiery pits it overlooked. She had watched as he created a semblance of order within the ranks of demons – the Lilim, descendants of Lilith, becoming his personal bodyguards. And though she had not been there for all of it, she had stayed by his side during each visit._

 _She knew that she'd have to permanently leave eventually – Hell was no place for an angel (with the exception of Lucifer). She'd even come up with a whole formalized speech for telling Lucifer why… But now that she was standing beside him, she realized that she couldn't do that to him. She couldn't take out the emotion behind her reasons._

 _And so she went through their usual sayings whenever she departed from Hell after a stay. She never said a word about when she would come again. She simply left – the image of a genuine smile on his burned and scarred face in her mind – and she didn't come back._

Lucifer didn't wake until the sun's morning rays had begun to cast their shadows, long after she'd left. Like those thousands of years ago, she had gone without a word of goodbye.

* * *

 **A/N: I'm a liar – turns out it is going to take me about a week to get a chapter out – Go figure. And for a fic that's gotten almost a thousand views over the course of almost two weeks, there's only been two reviews… Come on, guys, that's sad.**

 **But for real, I need some** ** _suggestions_** **on where I should take this story since I've hit a sort of writer's block: while I do have chapter 4 half-way written, I don't know what to do after it – the main issue being what to do after the fall finale because I'm going to be way AU at that point.**

 **On a side note (a prompt, really), does anyone want to share with the class what they think the message that God had Kemuel tell Lucifer was?**

Last edited: [March 16, 2018]

* * *

 **Tsukiyomi Sora:** I don't speak/write/read Spanish, so I had to Google translate your review (and I got "What I want to know is what role does Chloe have in this story?", which sounds like it's right). And hopefully I'm correct in assuming that you read English (because otherwise that'd awkward) since you seem to have read this story just fine, so my answer is that _I don't know yet…_

 **Guest:** _Close_ but not exactly – You're on the right track, that's for sure. I made sure that it was subtly mentioned in that chapter – not really subtext but you'd definitely have to be paying attention and reading in between the lines. Hint – it's around where Kemuel snapped back at Lucifer.

 **Lady Syndra:** I'm working on it ;-) Promise!


	5. Heavenly Host

**Chapter 4**

 **Heavenly Host**

"I knew you'd make it!"

Kemuel narrowly avoided getting tackled by the angel of joy. "Hey…"

Camael paused in her attempts to wrap her arms around Kemuel. "What's wrong?" she asked as a frown overcame her face.

"It's nothing to worry about, Cammie," Kemuel assured her little sister, placing her hands on the younger angel's shoulders and crouching to look her in the eyes.

The angel of joy huffed in a minor pout. "Is this about why Azrael came back all mad?"

"Maybe," Kemuel half-admitted. "But it might just be more that she's worried I'm staying on Earth a little too often than she likes."

Camael looked down sheepishly, shuffling her feet. "You _have_ been away more than usual."

Kemuel sighed, closing her eyes and counting to ten before reopening them. "Camael, I will _never_ leave any of you. You all mean too much to me for me to choose Earth over you."

"We believe you, Kem… We all do," Azrael's voice said from behind her, and Kemuel turned her head just enough to see that not only was Azrael there but also Zadkiel, Haniel, Ambriel, Uriel, Leliel, Cassiel, Jophiel, and many, many others.

"What is this?" she asked, standing and turning to face them – a hand still on Camael's shoulder.

"It's not an intervention," Zadkiel told her with a hint of amusement to help convey the attempted joke. He took that moment to brush several strands of his ginger hair (which had fallen across his face when he landed with the others) back with his hand.

The deep, gravelly tone of Cassiel's voice reached Kemuel's ears next. "We know you visited Lucifer after locking Mother away."

"And we know you helped him take his place on the throne of Hell," Jophiel added, his accented, bass voice reverberating in the clearing with its deepness.

"We've known since Azra saw you with him when she was escorting some souls down there," Leliel continued.

Kemuel narrowed her eyes at the angel of night. She should have known that Azrael had told their sister as the two were twins. But for them all to know..?

"We don't blame you for wanting to see him," Zadkiel said, taking the train of voices back up again.

Azrael let out a short laugh at the statement. "If anything, we commend you for doing so."

"None of us would have done it," Haniel muttered somberly.

Kemuel didn't know how to respond to her brother – to any of her brothers and sisters. So she just stood there, staring at each of them as they took a turn to speak.

Ambriel went next. "We just want you to know that you have our support in all of this."

"I think that you'll find even those of us not here will agree," Uriel added. "You've always been there for us, and now we will be here for you."

A chorus of agreements rang from the crowd gathered in the clearing. The main conspirators in this arrangement, earlier having stepped forward out of the many faces and the others now moving to join them, created a circle around Kemuel and Camael, who had stayed by her older sister's side the entire time. Kemuel was surrounded by her family – whole, well and happy.

But there was still one member missing.

— **o~O~o** —

"She's sulking over near the Gates again," a voice muttered.

Another scoffed. "No she's not— look, she's down on Earth."

A glare was sent in the being's direction. "You're obviously blind."

"You're obviously seeing things."

"…"

"…"

"That was a horrible come back."

"Shut up, the both of you," a new voice snapped at them.

"What is she even doing?" another voice asked after a stiff silence.

They all collectively watched the angel of authenticity for a moment. "It looks like she's watching Earth."

A huff. "More like watching Lucifer."

"She could be keeping an eye on the test that's taking place," the second voice from before inputted.

"That thing hasn't even started yet," someone else objected.

"But it _is_ being implemented."

"Don't even think about starting an argument."

"We weren't," the two chorused.

"What's with the girl?" yet another voice asked.

"The woman or the child?" the first voice asked in turn.

"… Both, I guess."

The owner of the first voice looked down to Earth, keeping a steady gaze on Chloe and Beatrice Decker. "The supposed killer of the woman's father was released from jail, which would account for the woman's high levels of stress, but the child seems fine to me."

"They live with a demon," someone commented.

"Kemuel said that Mazikeen could be trusted to protect the child and her mother."

"That doesn't mean the demon should be trusted."

"But it does mean that we don't have to worry about the demon."

"Isn't the demon Lucifer's personal bodyguard?"

"I think she used to be. It doesn't look like it anymore."

"What about the other human— the… doctor?"

"You mean the therapist? Dr. Martin is taking the supernatural aspect into her life rather well if you ask me."

"And if you ask me, she's not taking it that well at all. She just rejected the demon— not that I'm sympathizing with the Lilim."

"I think we can all agree that Mazikeen can be put under the inspection of those in good relations to Heaven."

There was a chorus of approval.

"Well, now that _that_ 's sorted out, can we please get back to the doctor woman?"

"What about her? She'll obviously start her appointments with Lucifer again by the end of the week if not sooner."

"Oh, and what makes you say that, brother?"

"Kemuel made sure that the doctor would be fine. It stands to reason, then, that Dr. Martin will be back to being involved in Lucifer's path."

A silence fell over the group of angels.

"What is _She_ doing?"

A shudder ran through the group at Her mentioning, and only one dared to look.

"She's starting to work on her vessel's job— being a lawyer or something. And it looks like she's already given a dozen of her clients directions to where Azrael's blade is."

"They better be careful with my baby."

"It's okay, Rae. It's a celestial sword; the worst they could do to it would be getting it covered in blood."

"Still… Lucifer better take care of it."

"Speak of the Devil— What on Earth is he up to?"

It took them all a whole minute to do a double take on what Lucifer was doing. Most of them were flabbergasted while several more were left outright confused.

"What..?"

"Did he just say..?"

"What in Creation is a 'Dansformation'?"

"Do you think he's trying to be someone else?"

"Maybe he's trying to—"

A different voice cut in. "Hey, guys— I gotta go do my rounds. Tell me about it all when I get back?"

There was a shuffling of feet. "I should get back to taking the new census."

"And I have to finish calculating birth/death rate statistics."

"There's probably a backup of souls I haven't welcomed into Heaven yet."

"…"

"…"

"Fine— Daniel, Vasiariah, you two stay with me; the rest of you get back to your work."

"But Za—"

"But what, Metatron? We'll keep a vigilant watch and inform you all as you come back."

There was a reluctant grumble of acknowledgment from the group, and slowly, the crowd dissipated. The remaining trio made themselves comfortable, sitting down. There was no telling how long it would be until one of the others would finish their job and return. At least they had each other for some company.

"Hey, where'd Kemuel go?"

Zadkiel swept his gaze to where he'd seen his older sister earlier. When he saw that she wasn't there, he threw his hands up in a 'why' gesture before covering his face with them as he rested his elbows on his knees.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Zadkiel groaned.

— **o~O~o** —

Golden sunlight streamed into the room through the curtained window, though the room itself seemed to radiate with its own warm glow. A man was sitting at a desk littered with paperwork, a mug of coffee steadily cooling off to the side. The man sighed, leaning back in his chair and rubbing his face with both hands.

A child with dirty blonde hair burst into the room, giggling in high spirits. "Daddy!" she cried, successfully wrapping her arms around the man's waist even with the awkward positioning due to the man sitting in a chair.

"Hey, monkey," the man greeted his daughter, lacing an arm around her shoulders to return the embrace.

"Whatcha working on, Daddy?" the girl asked curiously, peeking at the desktop.

The man moved to cover up some of the papers so that she wouldn't see some of the more disturbing pictures. "Just work, sweetheart."

"You're always working," Chloe complained, her bottom lip sticking out marginally.

"It's how I keep the world a safer place, so you and mom can be happy," he explained to her in a placating, negotiating tone.

"Tommy can keep his toy figures," she exclaimed, sticking up her nose. "You're my hero, Daddy!"

John Decker smiled. He ruffled Chloe's hair, gaining another giggle from the girl. "I love you, monkey."

"Chloe!"

Father and daughter looked towards the door. "What'd you do this time, huh?"

"Nothing," she said innocently.

Pulling back, he raised an eyebrow at her, and tapped a finger on her chest, over her heart. "Be honest, Chloe. Now run along and make up with your mother."

The girl nodded and embraced him once more before dashing out the door. The man returned to his work. A minute later, a dirty blonde haired girl burst into the room, happily exclaiming, "Daddy!"

Kemuel watched as the scene replayed in the exact same manner as it had not long ago. Such was the workings of personal heavens, where the human souls relived their happiest moments. This was the closest the angel of authenticity could get to Chloe without actually going to Earth.

From what she'd seen, the angel could understand why Chloe Decker might been seen as an extraordinary human being. Brave, honest and dedicated; not only a good cop but also a good mother – not to mention a good friend… And yet Kemuel still didn't understand.

With the way Kemuel was unintentionally broadcasting her thoughts and feelings, it didn't take long for God to notice and come to see what was wrong. **"I didn't give you permission to visit personal heavens as you pleased just so you could use them as another area away from your siblings for you to sulk in,"** He said, engaging the angel in conversation with a light tease that prompted for her to tell Him her thoughts.

"I don't understand… She makes him happy in ways I never could have… She's— _special_ … I don't understand why…" the angel admitted to Him as she continued to watch the replaying memory.

 **"Chloe Decker is the miracle child of John and Penelope Decker,"** He told her after a moment.

Kemuel frowned, turning her head to look at Him. "Miracle..? What do You mean?"

 **"Gabriel and Amenadiel would be able to tell you,"** He suggested nonchalantly during the lull of the memory after it had replayed another couple times.

Kemuel blinked, considering whether or not to give Him a response before turning to give Him a look. At His smile, she fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Unlike how I can find You, I don't have any way to get to them – especially Amenadiel with how close to Her he is."

He hummed in thought, rubbing His beard. **"Talk to Netzach. They'll need help with this case,"** He said, abruptly changing the subject.

"You're sending me to Earth?" Kemuel let out a soft sigh and shook her head at His rather unsubtle dismissal of the earlier topic.

 **"This is a game far more complicated than chess and against ourselves – to win, one must play twelve moves ahead and know the workings of every strategy to get to the end."**

Kemuel huffed at His answer, mulling over what it might mean before refocusing her thoughts to His orders. "I'll take that as a yes." Pausing, Kemuel bit her bottom lip. "Am I traveling to the morning Joe Fields was released from prison?"

He gave her a knowing smile. **"I'm glad you noticed the temporal paradox. Now I won't have to explain what you need to do."**

Kemuel opened her mouth, ready to argue against that statement when, but then shut it when she realized that was all she was going to get out of Him for the day. Technically, she did have a general idea of what she would do – or really, already had done as of yet. Time travel was always an abstruse matter.

With a swift nod, Kemuel took off in search of Netzach. It didn't take her long to find the keeper of their Father's time pieces. Using said time pieces was the easiest way to travel back and forth throughout the time continuum, though the action was rarely done. But apparently today would be an exception.

Somewhat like her younger siblings, whom she had noticed were subtly watching _her_ , she had been looking down to Earth to watch _herself_. It had only been a small ripple, a temporal disturbance barely large enough to catch her attention – but even as small as it was, it had – and she had kept an eye on herself interact with Chloe Decker during the minutes before Joe Fields had been murdered by Perry Smith. Now that she had spoken with Him and received a mission that could only have involved what she'd witnessed, Kemuel knew that when she had felt the disturbance, it had actually been her entering what the humans called a predestination paradox – albeit a very localized one.

Kemuel finally spotted the distinguished multicolored hair of her ninth younger brother (and, technically, thirteenth younger sibling). "Netzach, there you are. I've been looking for you," she greeted as she landed gracefully next to the timekeeping angel.

"Kemuel," the angel of eternity responded a touch warily. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, come now, Net— You know exactly why I'm here. I can't have been the _only one_ to have noticed the paradox."

Kemuel kept a steady, unnerving gaze on her little brother as he fidgeted in place. "Fine, but you know I'm not supposed to let anyone use them without permission anymore," he said, finally breaking when she added a raised eyebrow.

"Who said I didn't have permission?" she inquired half-jokingly. She needed to spend an afternoon alone with him sometime, get him to release some of the tension she was seeing in his shoulders.

Netzach relaxed a bit at the implication, glancing over to the time piece closest to them. "I guess it wouldn't be a problem then… I don't have to tell you the rules, do I?"

"Do you really have to ask?" she inquired in turn, playfully teasing him.

"… Not really," came the muttered response. Netzach glanced over to his right, eyeing the collection of time pieces. "I suppose a short trip wouldn't be unsound…"

The angel of eternity gestured for Kemuel to follow as he turned and moved over to a specific table. Kemuel's eyes widened at the time piece Netzach was going to lend her. "The Sands of Time?"

"You know I'm a fan of the classics," Netzach replied with a shrug as he stood on the other side of the large, golden hourglass.

"When you say classics, I think Chronos's Zodiac Wheel, the Time Machine from H.G. Wells' book of the same name, or even the TARDIS... not an idiom," Kemuel said with a smirk.

Netzach huffed in disagreement, giving her a mild glare. "You have the predetermined time you need to go to?"

"It'll be less than an hour before Joe Fields is murdered."

"And you'll be back here within the hour?" he asked, placing his hands on the top supports of the hourglass.

Kemuel mirrored the action, though she put her hands on the bottom handles. "Well..."

Netzach's face dropped, his eased mood faltering. "You're staying on Earth?" It was more of a statement than a question.

"It's just until they arrest Perry Smith," she assured him.

"You know I have to tell the others where you are eventually."

"And I'm not telling you not to— In fact, you can even tell them right after you've sent me back—" she began, her grip on the handles tightening slightly.

"Kemuel," Netzach interrupted, giving her a shy smile. "I'm not a fledgling anymore. I understand... Good luck."

The angel of authenticity was stunned by the other's admission. The next thing Kemuel knew, she was in the space-time vortex. Netzach must have turned the hourglass when he'd distracted her. At least she knew where (and when) she was. Not all trips into the vortex were smooth, and the further back in time one went, the rougher the 'ride' got. That being said, it would be easy for Kemuel to find the exit point she was looking for. Truthfully, Netzach _had_ chosen the best time piece to use for this trip.

Kemuel landed in a parking lot, and not far in the distance, Chloe Decker stood next to Warden Perry Smith as the supposed criminal, Joe Fields, was escorted to a prisoner transport truck.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, so there's Chloe, not that I've put what her role in all of this is yet. You people may or may not have noticed that I did some editing in the earlier chapters – it was just a bit of misspelled word corrections for the most part and a bit of added author's note in the prologue, so you don't** _ **have**_ **to go back and reread them unless you** _ **really**_ **want to.**

 **And not to crush anyone's hopes and dreams or anything, but I'm probably not going to be updating this until next year ('cause you know, that's only like** ** _three weeks_** **away). The reasons being that I've officially hit a major's writing block for this story** ** _and_** **that my family is going to California for the holidays so I won't really have the time to post anything (though I will hopefully be writing during the little breaks while traveling). If you're really wanting to know how I'm doing, I'll try to keep up a regular note on my profile. So fret not, I shan't abandon this story!**

Last edited: [March 20, 2018]

* * *

 **Lady Syndra:** My holiday was great, and I thank you (and any others) for understanding why I took a break. Technically, I still don't know what to do with Chloe, so I'm focusing on continuing a little plot between Luci and Kem (what I mentioned earlier). But Kemuel will have a part involving the Joe Fields case, which I'm planning on using for the season finale, and this was also a way to slowly introduce Kem to Chloe (and eventually Dan, too).

 **Lami:** I'm glad you think this story is cool. I hope I can keep meeting you expectations.


	6. Divine Intervention

**Chapter 5**

 **Divine Intervention**

Chloe Decker stalked towards her car. Furious rage blinded her from seeing the shorter woman – who easily looked like she could be a college student – standing by the passenger door until Chloe looked up across the top of her car. Still seeing red – _that man, that murderer had_ smiled _at her –_ Chloe didn't hear what the lady was saying until the last few words... "—visiting, and I'm afraid I need a ride into the city."

Blinking, Chloe paused, doing a double take. "I'm sorry, who are you?" she asked the stranger, shaking her head a little to rid herself of some of her more treacherous thoughts.

"My name is Kem," she said with a small smile.

"Right— Kim..." Chloe echoed, repeating the name back to herself (maybe it was short for Kimberly?). "And you said you needed a ride back to town?"

"Yes, you see—"

"Yeah, yeah, just get in the car," Chloe ordered distractedly, seeing the transport truck getting ready to leave.

Kim obliged, and Chloe slipped into the drivers seat, turning on the engine as Kim buckled the seat belt after giving it an odd look. Chloe pulled out of the parking space, carefully driving after the truck.

And then Lucifer called her. Chloe did her best to try and follow whatever weird scheme he was up to now, but she was in the middle of driving, doing something that a part of her reasoned that she shouldn't (but that voice was currently drowning in a pot of swirling emotions). And so, putting her phone away, Chloe hung up on Lucifer right after telling him " _Yeah, do whatever— I got to go_ "... Probably not the best idea to let him do whatever, but Chloe wasn't about to let—

"Should you be following that truck?"

The curious question took Chloe by surprise as she had practically forgotten all about the stranger in her car. Glancing over at the younger woman, Chloe took note of her kind features and did a quick profile of her. Chloe hoped that her gut was right about being able to trust this Kim lady.

"Uh, not really... I was just making sure that—" Chloe started, inwardly cringing at the excuse. The rage that had been festering since hearing that Joe Fields was to be released needed to be put on the back burner as Chloe didn't want to be rude to the lady.

"I'm sure a noble officer like yourself would have your reasons that I, as an abiding citizen, probably don't need to know..." Kim cut her off, effectively making it to where Chloe didn't have to answer.

The younger woman give her a small smile, disarming Chloe of any remaining suspicion and rage induced thoughts. There was even an odd feeling of trust that was planted with the smile – a train of thought that because Kim trusted Chloe, Chloe should trust Kim back. _Wait_ _—_ Chloe never said anything about being an officer of the law, and just like that – as if broken out of a reverie – Chloe narrowed her eyes at the woman with new amounts of suspicion.

"So what were you standing outside that prison for?" Chloe asked, shooting a glance at Kim.

"I was putting myself in a position to... find my brother," Kim admitted after a moment. "Though he'll stumble across me first at this rate," she mused with a slight chuckle.

Chloe felt herself gradually calming – even the rage that had been shoved aside to make room for a bit of manners was being tempered as her thoughts were being led away from the source of her troubles. This calm helped open a window – so to say – for her to look at things properly.

She wanted to bash her head against something. How could she have been so stupid? Following the guy who killed her father – great idea! And to do what exactly? God, what was she thinking?!

 _Okay, stop, backtrack. Focus._ "Your brother, huh? So you're visiting family."

"You could say that... I may have gotten on his bad side recently, and I'm hoping to rectify the matter," Kim responded amicably.

That... that was something, Chloe supposed. Again, trusting feelings washed over her, but not in the almost overwhelming way as it had done so earlier. What was with that? Either way, Chloe could tell Kim wasn't lying – that didn't help with Chloe trying not to completely trust the other woman.

Chloe slammed her foot down on the breaks, jostling both of them. She hadn't meant to stop so suddenly, but the sight before her caused an instinctual reaction. Slowly, Chloe undid her seat belt, opening the car door as Kim stared at the transport truck.

"Stay in the car," Chloe ordered breathlessly when she had fully gotten out of the car. She didn't wait for a response, pulling out her gun while moving towards the truck.

— **o~O~o** —

Kemuel didn't stay in the car.

While their first in-person, face-to-face meeting hadn't gone as expected, Chloe was just as Kemuel had imagined: righteous. And though Chloe was leaning towards wrath-influenced vengeance, she had been able to snap out of it (okay, so maybe Kemuel had helped a _tiny_ bit). What perked Kemuel's interest on several levels, however, was just how easily Chloe threw off Kemuel's usual... _persuasions_.

For the most part, Kemuel had a knack of getting anyone – especially humans – to almost immediately trust her. It was part of being the angel of authenticity: you could be trusted, you could be depended, relied upon. And Kemuel did her best to live up to her title, which worked out for her more often than not.

If anything, her other titles – the two derived from her name – were much easier to carry out. Somehow, seeing God and helping Him just seemed to connect more with her than with her abilities if that made any sense.

Still, it made Kemuel wonder again just what it was that made Chloe Decker special. _Miracle child_... Like that told Kemuel anything. And as she had told Him, she highly doubted that she'd be able to reach Gabriel or Amenadiel to ask them, and she had a strong feeling that Lucifer had no idea either.

Well, at least everything was still going according to what she'd seen earlier – right now... whatever, time travel terminology. Just as she had seen, Chloe had told her to stay in the car when they noticed the off-road prison transport truck. And just like Kemuel had seen, she decided to fly to the back of the truck as soon as she was out of Chloe's sight.

Kemuel knew about the dead driver and escort. She knew about Joe Fields. Death never changed. The angel repressed a shudder while she waited for the detective to discover the body of her father's supposed murderer.

It didn't take long for Chloe to come around the side of the truck – gun raised and ready to fire – all the while calling out for the dead man to surrender. The woman's eyes widened in surprise when she saw Kemuel already standing in front of the back doors. The gun lowered a hair.

"H-how did you—" Chloe sputtered before getting cut off by Kemuel.

"It would appear that this Joe Fields of yours is dead, detective," the angel said with a small gesture to the body.

Kemuel had known from the very moment she met with Him that day that it would be a long day. Unfortunately, what could be seen as the worst part of the day had yet to come. At least Kemuel wouldn't have to deal with the departing souls – the reapers handled that for the most part with Azrael occasionally helping by doing her job.

What was even worse was that the worst part about the worst part of the day was that it really shouldn't have been the worst part of the day, an event that came much sooner than Kemuel liked.

"What is she doing here?" came the clipped, accented voice.

Kemuel turned to face her older brother, any emotion she felt hidden behind a careful, stiff mask. "I'll have you know I was just leaving."

With that Kemuel started walking to the spot she'd seen herself 'disappear' and then flew off to the Deckers' home to wait. Just like that, the worst part of the day came and went.

The short passing had been cold, disconnected. She hated that. She hated the emotional cut off. Kemuel was not a fan of apathy, but sometimes it was needed. In this case, she needed to leave without a confrontation, which meant that she had to keep her actions focused on what she needed to do – what she had seen herself do. And she would continue to follow the path she'd laid out for herself even if it meant causing herself more pain for the benefit of others.

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer slipped up. His gamble into becoming like Detective Dan Espinoza had taken a momentary off course waver when he saw her.

 _Why_ was _she_ there? She had no reason to be on Earth. Not now that already 'checked up' on him, and certainly not because of something God wanted… unless— _No_. No, no, no, no, no – Lucifer refused to believe that God had sent her down to Earth, specifically to place her in his path. _Just no._

But then, when he'd asked her – albeit a touch heatedly, an ancient rage stirring once more – she had simply left. No explanation, no emotional words, no thoughtful looks. Only a dismissal and an abrupt departure. One which Lucifer was sure had required a celestial touch over the minds of the humans for her sudden absence not to have been noticed.

If anything… Lucifer felt hurt by her apathetic brush (no, he didn't— _yes, he did_ ). Perhaps he deserved as much. After all, he seemed to be hurting everyone he met nowadays. Of course it would affect even one of his closest confidants (former confidant— _she could still be trusted_ —could she?). And yet, she hadn't appeared to be ruffled by his presence, merely distant.

Why did it all have to be so frustratingly confusing?

But that was why Lucifer was – as he had told Chloe earlier – 'taking a walk in another man's shoes'. Dan's to be precise. Dan was simple. People liked him, trusted him, though the man was helpful – all were qualities that Lucifer needed to adapt to at the moment (and maybe it would stick).

"Hey, man, who was that?" Dan's inquiring voice finally made its way over the hustle and bustle of the crime scene to Lucifer's ears. "You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Lucifer shook himself out of his thoughts, glancing at the detective. "I'm fine," he huffed, straitening back up in his posture.

His tedious study of following Dan was quickly being transferred over to Lucifer's own characteristics. It was relatively easy to pick up on several of Dan's traits. The harder ones being the ones Lucifer needed to work on the most. It hadn't taken long for Lucifer to gleam that shutting up and listening helped with making the process of studying Dan even easier.

It was when he and Dan questioned Chloe back at the police station that his resolve with the transformation wavered again.

"But you still shouldn't have followed him. No one actually thinks that you did this, but you know what this looks like, right?" Dan had been saying to Chloe.

"Yes, I do," Chloe said, acknowledging the statement. "That's why I'm going to step away from the case. It's a massive conflict of interest. And even with Kim there with me, I know I could still get blamed."

Lucifer's shoulders subtly stiffened at the name mentioned. Chloe had to have meant Kemuel instead of _'Kim'_. Had the angel of authenticity not given the detective her full name? Lucifer couldn't comprehend why ( _it's because Chloe wouldn't believe that Kemuel is an angel_ —just like Chloe didn't believe him to be the Devil).

"Do you know how I could find this 'Kim' of yours?" Dan asked, still taking the lead. "She didn't hang around long enough for the officers to get her statement."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that. Knowing her, she'll turn up on her own eventually," Lucifer muttered, shooting a sharp glare at a corner of the room.

"What makes you say that?" Chloe asked him, clearly hearing his self-directed comment.

"You obviously know who Kim is," Dan continued off of Chloe. "You recognized her at the scene."

"That doesn't mean I'll be able to help you find her. She's more than likely avoiding me, and she won't just come out for a reliable, helpful, boring detective such as yourself."

Detective Espinoza sighed, rolling his eyes at Lucifer's response, and turned back to his ex. "Don't worry, Chloe. I'm gonna stay on this."

"Yes, Detective Dan and I won't rest until we catch the killer."

"I don't think that it's a good idea for Lucifer to be part of this case," Dan inputted, voicing his opinion.

"I agree. I mean, the last thing this case needs is a loose canon. She needs someone like you with the traits I listed just thirty seconds ago. Now, the good news is that's me as well now. So, the Dans are on the case."

"Can't you take anything seriously, man?" Dan demanded, suddenly standing.

Lucifer slowly turned as he got up to face the male detective. "I assure you I'm taking this very seriously."

"Oh, really? You're doing a great job of showing that."

"Guys," Chloe called their attention, having to look up to look them both in the eyes. "It would mean a lot to me if you worked together on this."

"Of course, Chloe," Dan relented as Lucifer let out a brief hum in acknowledgment.

Perhaps if he was lucky (or possibly unlucky when viewed in another perspective), Kemuel wouldn't interfere with the rest of this case. Lucifer was distracted enough as it was, and her deterring him from his goal (he really needed a name for it) would only cause more problems ( _or maybe it would help_ ).

Lucifer inwardly huffed in frustration. He needed to stop arguing with himself. Coincidentally, he agreed wholeheartedly with that.

— **o~O~o** —

Kemuel had stepped out of the empty house for some fresh air.

Maze would be coming back soon, and Trixie would arrive with her mother not long after. Time travel had its perks. Knowing how long it was until someone arrived at the house just happened to be one of them. However, while patience was a virtue that almost all angels shared, even the most virtuous of beings were tested at times. That being said, Kemuel's patience was running thin.

 _Why did Lucifer have to be_ her _stubborn, hard-headed, idiotic, older brother?_

 **"Do not your other older brothers fall into at least one of each of those categories as well?"** His voice rang in her ear, followed by a rumbling chuckle.

Kemuel sat down on the stone bench that she had found outside of the Deckers' home. She looked up to the sky, inwardly scoffing. It wasn't like she could see Heaven from here. Well, technically, she could, but on the physical plane that she was currently restricting her eyes to, she couldn't.

 _I didn't realize that I would have another conversation with You today… And yes, they do,_ she directed the thought back in response.

 **"It was not for you to know until now."**

She let out a sigh, looking down at her hands. _It was never this hard before._

 **"Before, you had yet to leave him as you had,"** He pointed out.

 _Is it this hard for You?_ she asked, the quiet thought hesitantly voicing itself.

 **"It used to be,"** He answered in a thoughtful tone after a moment.

Her eyes flicked up, staring off to places not on Earth. _What changed?_

 **"You already know the answer to that question,"** He said almost teasingly – though perhaps that was how it was supposed to be.

 _Do I, though?_ she thought seriously. _Such knowledge eludes me even though You say I once knew it._

 **"It is not a matter of not remembering, but a matter of not acknowledging the memories."**

 _You're being cryptic again,_ she muttered the thought.

Kemuel didn't need to being looking at Him to know He was smiling. **"Not all is straightforward."**

 _And there are things one must find out by oneself,_ she finished. She took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. _So You've told me before._

 **"And so you should remember that you were the one to prompt me to hold back on how often** ** _I_** **intervene in matters,"** He reminded her.

A smile flickered across Kemuel's face before disappearing. _That was a request that I obliged in telling to You._

 **"That's why I agreed to it."**

That smile came back as a small, subtle smirk. _That's all? No other reason?_

There was a pause before He spoke His next words. **"I suppose it wasn't the** _ **only**_ **reason."**

 _You have to admit, Dad,_ Kemuel started, using the loose moniker for Him that was becoming more popular in the angel family rather than the more formal title of Father, _even Michael had You on that affair._

 **"Yes, I hadn't expected him to join your little bandwagon for Free Will,"** He admitted. **"Though, I must say, it was one of the best suggestions I've ever been given."**

Her eyes caught sight of a butterfly landing on a nearby flower. _I doubt there are very many who would disagree with You about that nowadays,_ she mused.

 **"While that's true, there are still those who would. It is a simple matter of belief, something even I cannot deny due to that request."**

 _You know, Michael was the one that asked me to tell You… Do you think it was for Lucifer?_ she asked with pursed lips as the butterfly moved on to the next bright flower.

 **"It would surprise me if that wasn't the reason,"** He answered thoughtfully. **"He was always closer to Lucifer than he was with any of his other brothers. Michael hated that Samael ever rebelled, but he doesn't blame Lucifer for it. Nor does he blame their Mother."**

 _He blames You, doesn't he?_ Kemuel asked sadly, though it was more a statement of observation than a question. _You know where he is, too, don't You._

 **"I know where all of my children are."**

 _Even if they don't know where You are?_

Kemuel sighed, mentally kicking herself when He didn't respond.

* * *

 **A/N: I struggled with this chapter so much – it wasn't even the whole chapter. I just... _cannot_ write Chloe – she just refuses to be written. Seriously, not even half of what you read at the top with Chloe was what I originally wrote (it's mostly part of what I rewrote/re-rewrote). So I kind of just switched to Kemuel when I finally got fed up (same with Luci, except I had a better time with him). There was a long section of the usual conversation between Kem and God, but I'm using it to help set up for the chapter when Kemuel reveals to Lucifer exactly what happened for God to lock Charlotte away (because Luci only knows that She crossed the line – just not what line).**

 **Anyways, Happy New Year, everyone. I can't believe 2016 is finally over.**

Last edited: [March 23, 2018]

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 **Lami:** I don't mind mentioning you at the end of these chapters. I guess you could think of it as a benefit for reviewing. And while _City of Angels_ is still really close to cannon at the moment, it will have to diverge at some point. That point is starting to look really close too.

 **Grovek26:** Why thank you.


	7. An Interlude

**Interlude 1**

 **An Interlude**

It started out as little, minor things. Things that she wouldn't have even noticed or cared for if she didn't know that it wasn't the way She treated Her sons… Her first born. Still, she said nothing. The subtle scoffs and hidden looks of disdain directed at her didn't bother her. They were nothing in comparison to her Father's radiant smiles and proud nods.

Kemuel knew He was particularly fond of her due to her status as the first of His angels to be more associated with the female gender, caring for her with a special protective incentive as any father would have for their daughter. She knew He had been a little worried about how Michael and Samael and Amenadiel would take to having a sister, but her older brothers were kind and gave her no small amounts of attention.

While they didn't include her in some things, Kemuel could hold her ground against them in a quick sparring session. She could stun them with some of her more agile maneuvers executed in the open space of the sky on her swift wings, though she didn't hold a candle to Gabriel's speed. Kemuel could shower them with a concern that they, as brothers, couldn't give themselves without breaking their self-held masculine images. They appreciated it. They appreciated her.

When their Father made Zadkiel, Kemuel was ecstatic. Zadkiel was her first little brother, and she was to take care of him. God often complimented her on how she raised the ginger haired, green eyed angel. She had done well, He would say. Kemuel's older brothers would be more indifferent to Zadkiel than they were to her, but they were all still a family. Michael still taught Zadkiel basics of strategy; Samael gave him a few lessons on how to sing; Raphael made sure he knew how to patch up minor wounds; Gabriel helped with teaching Zadkiel how to fly; and Amenadiel showed their little brother how to fight.

Azrael and Leliel came next. Zadkiel was able to help Kemuel teach the twins the ropes and passed on what the two needed to know. They both grew up to be fine, talented young angels – Azrael would become one of Kemuel's closest friends, and Leliel one of Zadkiel's confidants.

God graced the family with another set of twins: Metatron and Sandalphon. Titles were beginning to be associated with each angel. The first born all had many titles, but Kemuel and her younger siblings' titles often pertained to their 'jobs' or simply where their talents lie. Not that the younger angels minded. They treated each other with respect, as they were taught by Kemuel and Zadkiel and Azrael and Leliel and the rest of their older siblings who passed the lessons down to a new generation.

It was as Cassiel, Raziel, Tzaphkiel, Barachiel, Uriel, Ariel and Haniel were teaching the whole next generation themselves (by insistence from Zadkiel and Azrael that Kemuel take a short break) that Kemuel began to notice an odd occurrence. Like those directed at herself, the snide sneers and hateful looks were nothing if no one saw. But then Netzach misplaced one of Father's time pieces. It was a small accident, and Netzach had found the time piece quickly with Kemuel's help. Somehow her brother had been injured during the week that followed.

When Kemuel asked about the bruised wrist, Netzach only shook his head and called it a clumsy mistake of his own doing. Kemuel, however, saw through the lie. She was the angel of authenticity after all. But nothing like Netzach's 'clumsy mistake' happened again. Not for a long while.

The next incident that would occur wasn't far enough away.

* * *

 **A/N: So (as you should infer from the title of the 'chapter') this was an interlude. I'm thinking about making these as we go to get a bit of like what happened (in reference to what lead to Kemuel finally ratting out Charlotte). This will also hopefully keep me from having to do some really long flashback later on when Lucifer finally finds out. I'm sorry I still don't have an actual chapter to give you people, but I'm quite literally stuck as to what to do with the story. I have an idea of where to go just not how to get there…**

Last edited: [March 23, 2018]

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 **thatgirl221b:** And I love your enthusiasm. I really will try to get another chapter out before the end of the month. Pinky promise.


	8. Certain Differences

**Chapter 6**

 **Certain Differences**

"What are you doing here, angel?" Maze asked sharply as she strode past Kemuel.

"Does it matter why I am here, demon?" Kemuel asked back, getting up from the stone bench to follow Maze.

"It does when Trixie _and_ Chloe are due to arrive within the hour," the demon retorted. She pulled out a key and quickly unlocked the door. A moment after she walked through the doorway, she paused, slowly turning to look at the angel. "You coming in or not?"

Kemuel took the invitation and stepped inside the Deckers' (and Maze's) home. It was much quieter when Trixie wasn't there. The angel of authenticity silently watched as the demon wandered off to her room – to prepare for her interview as a preschool aide if the angel remembered correctly, which she did.

The angel debated on whether or not to start making another double-layer chocolate cake for Trixie. Technically, she had seen herself look around to see if the ingredients for the cake were all available, which they were, but she never actually got to make the chocolatey dessert… Would it really be that bad to change one minor detail?

Stupid question. The humans had a term for it, didn't they? Butterfly effect? Though Kemuel knew that a single flap of a butterfly's wings most definitely would not cause a hurricane to occur several weeks later. Nor would the flap of a sea gull's wings be enough to change the course of Earth's weather forever.

Puriel, Zophiel, and Ophaniel (and possibly Seraphiel, Ezekiel and Barachiel) would all have a fit over having to constantly keep the weather the way it was supposed to be… The angels of rain, hailstorms, and snow (and the sky, thunder and lightning) – all respectively – were rather proud (not enough to be on the sinful side) of the 'balance' they kept involving the weather. To be honest, Kemuel didn't completely understand how 'balance' fit into that sentence. Still, they did do a good job to keep the weather from falling into an utterly chaotic mess.

Either way, whether she baked the cake or not really wouldn't matter anymore because Chloe walked in at that moment. However, Chloe was too preoccupied to notice the angel until Trixie suddenly gasped and ran to hug the angel. "Kemuel!"

"Hello, Trixie," Kemuel greeted the child, returning the hug. The angel looked back to Chloe, who had dropped the bag she'd been holding.

"You…"

Kemuel gave Trixie's mother a warm smile. "Me," she affirmed, drawing back from the hug.

"I'm gonna go put my stuff up. Be right back!" Trixie exclaimed as she raced to her room to put away her backpack.

"You… and Trixie…"

Kemuel inwardly sighed. Chloe wouldn't take this all too well. "I met your daughter the first day I came to Los Angeles," Kemuel said, filling in a blank for the struggling woman.

"Whe—" Chloe cut herself off, coming to her own answer. "That day when Dan and I couldn't pick her up, and she got an escort home— that was _you_ … But so then now— H-how did you—"

"Maze let me in," Kemuel inputted before Chloe could go on. She already knew what the woman was going to ask anyway. "We had met before on Halloween. I made the cake for Trixie."

A flicker of recognition flashed in Chloe's eyes. "That was you, too..? But then why..?"

"Why am I here?" Kemuel completed. "I told you before. I'm here for my brother, but with the way he's acting right now, I'll just piss him off even more if I confront him."

Kemuel was save from another question by Trixie running back into the room. "Kem! Kem! Will you stay for lunch?"

"That's up to your mother, Trixie," Kemuel told her, glancing at Chloe.

"Mommy! Can Kemuel stay for lunch?" Trixie turned her hopeful gaze on her mother.

"I— I guess—"

"Yay!" Trixie grabbed Kemuel's hand and started pulling the angel to her room. "Come on! I wanna show you what I did in class yesterday."

— **o~O~o** —

 **"How are you faring, little one?"**

Camael looked up in surprise. "I'm doing well, Father," she answered.

The angel of joy hadn't been expecting her Father to visit the Garden. In fact, she hadn't been expecting to see Him at all for quite a while. The only reason she was in the Garden right now was because the flowers needed tending to, and her brothers and sisters that were watching Kemuel had the task well under control.

 **"That's good. That's good,"** He mused to Himself.

"May I ask why You're visiting today?"

 **"To check on you of course… How are your wings? Any problems?"** He asked, sitting down beside her.

Camael shook her head. "I still can't fly past a certain point, but I never have to go that far from Heaven anyways."

God looked down in thought, pursing His lips pensively. **"Nothing else, though? Nothing that pains you?"**

"Dad, I'm fine," the angel of joy assured Him with a smile. She picked an anemone from the small plot she was tending to. "I'm not the one You need to worry over," she added conspiratorially.

 **"I worry about all my children."**

"That's why You have gray hair," she teased Him with a snicker.

 **"Yes, I was wondering how that came to be,"** He responded dryly.

Camael laughed with Him after He cracked a smile. The musical notes rang throughout the clearing they sat in and echoed along the pathways leading out to the Silver City and to the personal heavens of the multitude of human souls.

"I like the new look," she commented after the air quieted, though it still hummed with the previous laughter.

 **"Good,"** He said, stroking the new style of facial hair He'd taken on. **"I was beginning to think it wasn't the best decision when Kemuel didn't say anything about it."**

"You did an almost complete make over," Camael observed, glancing at Him with a more critical eye.

 **"Well, I can't have anyone recognize me if I were to venture to Earth again,"** He pointed out.

Camael gingerly picked at a few leaves that were lying around on the lush grass. "Everyone's going to Earth nowadays," she muttered.

 **"My dear risen, if it bothers you so, I wouldn't mind if you joined me,"** He began.

"No, no," she politely interrupted. "It's fine… I just get a little concerned sometimes."

 **"Whatever for, little one?"**

"Sometimes I worry that they might never come back," she admitted quietly.

A slight frown flashed across His features before smoothing away just as quickly as it had come. **"If it came to it, would you follow them?"**

Camael let out an uncharacteristically bitter laugh. "I'm not exactly in the position to do so," she said, the feathers of her wings unconsciously ruffling.

 **"Let me rephrase my question: if you did have the ability to fly wherever you pleased, would you follow your brothers and sisters to stay on Earth should they do so?"**

A contemplative expression fell over her face. A minute later, the angel of joy blinked and sighed heavily. "I don't know. Perhaps I would stay for a while, but Heaven is always home to me. I wouldn't be able to stay away for long," she finally answered.

God hummed a note at her response and then nodded. **"I have an idea,"** He suddenly proclaimed.

" _Oh_ , that's scary," she deadpanned.

A bark of laughter escaped her lips as He reached over and gave her wings a brief brush, power laced fingertips tickling the underside of her primaries. The angel of joy barely managed to escape the swift fingers when they rounded on her bare feet, tucking said feet underneath her, and she quickly wrapped her wings around her, peeking at Him through a fan of red-speckled feathers. The fingers relented and retreated back to their owner's lap.

 **"** _ **Silene tomentosa**_ **or** _ **Epipogium aphyllum**_ **?"** He asked suddenly.

"Gibraltar Campion or Ghost Orchid?" Camael repeated, blinking in surprise as she folded her wings back into their resting position. "Should I be expecting a few extinct flowers to be added to the Garden?"

 **"They're all in here somewhere,"** He said with a shrug. **"But I'm sure you wouldn't mind an addition or two to that little garden of yours."**

Camael's face flushed with heat at the mentioning of her plays at keeping a garden of her own, filled with flowers of all kinds that Kemuel or one of the others brought her after a mission on Earth (though sometimes it was more like her siblings snuck out). She knew that He would know about her little garden – _of course He would_ – but she didn't think He'd take an interest in it. She mumbled her answer.

 **"Ah, the middlemist red. Going outside the box, are we?"** He mused with a smile. **"Very well, my risen, the next time you see me, I shall have your gifts,"** He told her, standing up.

He was gone before Camael even blinked. The angel of joy sighed, looking down at the flowers she was tending to. Though a small smile adorned her face, her eyes showed the depth of her battling emotions. Determinedly, she got back to work. Worry and fear would not win today.

— **o~O~o** —

By the time Kemuel had left the Deckers' home, Trixie had finished her homework, Maze was out somewhere, and Chloe had new information regarding her father's supposed murderer. While Kemuel had stayed for a little bit after lunch, she had also refused to answer anymore of Chloe Decker's questions that dealt with the angel's life or why the angel was there, though Kemuel did mention to the detective that she'd be around for a while.

Lunch had been awkward to say the least. Maze had barely even acknowledged Kemuel before she walked out, waving a hand in as a departing gesture. Then Trixie had saved Kemuel from another bout of tedious conversation by dragging the angel to the girl's room once more – this time to do homework. Kemuel made sure to keep Trixie in her room when Tina Fields came into the house with a gun.

And now, a couple hours later, Kemuel was standing in front of the entrance to an out of the way antique bookshop. She wandered if the owner of the bookshop realized that moving to LA from Soho (London area, not Manhattan) didn't do him any good in his attempt to get away from the Heaven and Hell fiasco that happened in the late 1900s. She knew his demon _friend_ wasn't around. She actually preferred that the demon wasn't; as much as she was entertained by the demon's presence, she wanted this little… family meeting to be private.

That in mind, Kemuel entered the little shop. The soft chime of the door's bells echoed throughout the store. Books lined the walls and the shelves. Some were stacked on tables – a particular stack started on the floor and reached the ceiling – and though it seemed like the books were mostly haphazardly put everywhere, she could tell each work was purposefully placed in its spot.

As for the shop itself, the air was musty with damp smells, and dust being kept at a moderate centimeter of thickness. The space wasn't very well lit either, most of the dim light filtering in through the door's window. All of this was to keep people from actually coming in to buy one of the books. Kemuel knew her brother's prized books were all in display cases in the furthest back section of the little shop, and she smiled as she read the title of one. He _would_ have a complete set of Infamous Bibles – all of which had typesetting errors in them – on display.

Deciding that she shouldn't stall any longer, Kemuel dinged the bell sitting on the counter, stepping back to listen to the pleasant ring that filled the air. A soft muttering coming from the back room could be heard, and then a series of shuffling noises soon followed.

"I'm sorry! The shop's been closed for now!" a European accented voice called out from where the other noises originated.

She knew why the owner of the bookstore had said that to her. He tended to ward off any buyers by keeping absurd opening hours. After all, every single one of the books here was a part of his collection.

"It's not even three in the afternoon yet," she called back.

The owner seemed to consider her statement, and then proceeded to return a reply. "Is it not the owner's choice of deciding when a shop is open or closed?"

"Zira, it's me," Kemuel answered expectantly.

A blond mop of hair made itself known as Aziraphale stepped out from behind a wall. Pale blue eyes peered at Kemuel though his glasses, which sat perched near the tip of his nose. His moderate height only added onto the effect that he was looking down on her.

"Why didn't you just come out with that first, dear?" he asked, stepping up to the counter with a knowing frown upon his face.

"And ruin my surprise drop-in on my little brother? Never," she lightly teased.

If Aziraphale hadn't been one of the more courteous angels raised in Heaven, he would have rolled his eyes at her antics. While appreciated, the surprise visit would have been more well taken if she had mentioned it ahead of time. "You're lucky. Crowley is off attending to some business on the east coast and won't be back for some time."

"I know," Kemuel told him, raising an eyebrow. "Besides, the worst the demon could have done was make snide commentary while we discussed… other matters."

"I assume you mean dear Luci," the younger angel grumbled, looking down and readjusting one of his sleeve cuffs.

Kemuel nodded. Aziraphale was perhaps the most informed of the few angels currently stationed on Earth; however, he often wasn't up to date with the occurrences outside of his own little world when he became engrossed with something that took all of his attention. That being said, it would be a lot easier to explain things since he knew what was going on.

Aziraphale let out a soft sigh. "I suppose I'll get out the alcohol."

Kemuel didn't bother stopping her brother from getting a drink. She would decline his offer of a glass, but she wouldn't keep him from having his own. Distantly, she hoped he wouldn't get plastered like a certain time that she recalled. While watching her little brother trip over his incoherent thoughts had been somewhat amusing, Kemuel needed him to have his wits about him.

It was a shame and a relief that she would exit the mini paradox she had created during her time with Aziraphale. As an angel, time wasn't always significant in passing, and yet she found herself surprised that the day would be over soon. The sun was setting, the moon beginning to rise.

Chloe Decker would be able to catch her father's true killer with Maze and Lucifer's help. While Kemuel hadn't actually done anything to help with the case, her interference would help later on during the trial. At least… that was the whole point of the slight deviation anyways. Spending time with Trixie afterwards was more of an out-of-the-way affair – pleasure rather than business – and meeting up with Chloe again was simply another chance to read the human's soul. Not that Kemuel was able to gleam anything from her.

However, visiting Aziraphale did have an importance of its own, separate from her earlier mission and separate from anything involving Lucifer despite talking about him with Aziraphale – that was more of Kemuel venting some of her frustrations to one of her siblings that would listen with a different perspective of things (and it had helped too).

"Zira," Kemuel started slowly after their last topic had petered off. She needed to start wrapping her time with her brother up. Perry Smith had undoubtedly been arrested by now. The other angel made a noncommittal grunt in response to her calling of his name, taking another sip of his wine. "You still have that book, don't you?"

It was a rather silly question. If there was one book that Aziraphale would never – under any circumstances until the literal end of time – give or sell to any stubborn or adamant customer, it would be the one the angel of authenticity was referring to. Aziraphale choked on his drink at its casual mentioning, coughing several times before clearing his throat and then downing a _healthy_ dose of his alcohol.

"Dear me, why on Earth would you need that thing back?" he asked warily, leaning back in his chair at the table in the back room they'd moved to.

Kemuel looked away for a split second, but it was enough of a tell that her brother picked up on it. Aziraphale suddenly stood and walked over to an antique looking safe. After opening it, he pulled a rather ordinary looking book out and moved back to the table to set it down once he closed the safe.

"I'll have you know this thing has been an absolute doozy to keep away from Crowley," he muttered, taking his seat and refilling his glass. "As much as I love him, he can be a bit nosy at times."

The angel of authenticity smiled slightly at this. Aziraphale and Crowley were certainly an odd couple. They were admittedly in love, yes, but their unique relationship had been built upon thousands of years of time spent together (just over six thousand to be precise). Aziraphale was the first – _and so far only_ – angel to find happiness with another being that wasn't an angel without either himself or Crowley meeting… deadly consequences.

The others that had tried to create something with others – humans, in fact – hadn't been able to handle the pain of their lovers dying when the humans inevitably died. Even though in both cases the human souls ascended to Heaven, the angels were still crushed by their deaths and ended up killing themselves. So perhaps the reason Aziraphale's relationship was going so well was because his partner wasn't exactly human.

However, that theory concerned Kemuel. It meant that whatever became of Lucifer and Chloe's budding romance, it might not end well. Then again, if Father truly did want Lucifer to find and then _retain_ happiness (which He did), maybe it didn't entirely center around Chloe.

Kemuel deemed that the subject needed to be thought on some more, but for now she was digressing and needed to get back to the topic at hand. "You won't have to worry about this book again if everything goes as planned," she told her brother, taking the book and standing up to leave. "Tell Crowley I said hello."

"Oh, I'm sure I'll get to do so as soon as he gets back," Aziraphale mused. "Stay safe, my dear."

"I should be telling you that, Zira," Kemuel said, raising an eyebrow. With a small wave, she flew off back to Heaven.

* * *

 **A/N: I am** _ **so**_ **sorry. I completely fell off the map for a while there, didn't I? I mean, I put out that Interlude, but that wasn't really an actual chapter. And it wasn't just a struggle with this chapter, but also that it was just slow to getting it typed out.** _ **School**_ … **it's a love/hate relationship.** _ **Of course**_ **I just happened to get all of my 'hard' classes all in the same friggin' semester. And then there was this great idea for a** _ **Supernatural**_ **fic that I had to get out of my system, which meant I had to go back and reread all of the stuff I had for this… and yeah, excuses. But here's a chapter. Hopefully I'll have the next one out by April..? (If the last actual chapter was anything to go by, don't trust me on that date.)**

 **Anyways, for those of you who didn't recognize Aziraphale (my version of him anyways), he's from the book** _ **Good Omens**_ **(which means he definitely doesn't belong to me). Crowley on the other hand… Well, I'm made him a weird mix of** _ **Supernatural**_ **'s Crowley and** _ **Good Omens**_ **'. Basically he was always a demon, though it wouldn't have affected his relationship to Aziraphale here. Whatever, just go with it. (And for those of you who have read** _ **Good Omens**_ **, don't tell me that relationship isn't there. I swear it's the nightingale.)**

Last edited: [March 23, 2018]

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 **QuirkCirc:** I'm glad you love it so much. It can't be that crazy, 'cause you're not the only one who's following this piece.


	9. Distinct Colors

**Chapter 7**

 **Distinct Colors**

"Where have you been?" Camael cried, staring at her older sister for a long moment. Before the angel of authenticity could answer, the angel of joy got up and quickly closed the gap between then, wrapping her arms around Kemuel's waist.

"I was in John Decker's heaven, and then I paid a visit to Earth," Kemuel finally answered after she returned the embrace. While it wasn't the whole truth, it wasn't like she was lying outright… just omitting bits and pieces. Her little sister didn't need to know about the book she'd retrieved from Aziraphale.

Camael frowned at Kemuel's answer but accepted it nonetheless. Already a very trusting angel, the angel of joy had no reason to not trust the angel of authenticity. "You know, Zad was looking all over for you— he even took a bunch of others who weren't working to find you…"

Kemuel sat down with her sister as Camael went on a tangent about all of the places Zadkiel went looking for Kemuel. Apparently he hadn't bothered to check the Garden for himself, as Camael had reported no findings of their older sister and had yet to inform anyone of the angel of authenticity's current presence in the Garden. Kemuel supposed that it wouldn't hurt to stay a little longer, and if anyone else asked, she could honestly say that she had been in the Garden.

With Zadkiel's expedition out of the way, the angel of joy moved on to other topics to talk about with her sister (read as: gossip). Namely that Metatron had been complaining again about something or other, and then the Scribe was subsequently shut up when his twin whispered something in his ear – Camael had bets that Sandalphon had threatened to reveal that Metatron had a fluffy stuffed animal he liked to cuddle with when no one else was around.

There was also the matter of Barachiel messing with Uriel again; those two never really got along – mainly because Uriel was a firm believer in the patterns throughout the universe and creation while Barachiel was more of a spur of the moment kind of angel, which went well with his lightning attributes but often sparked fights with Uriel.

And then Camael told Kemuel about how Azrael was probably going to be out and about for a while since their sister had lost a bet with some reaper and now had to cover soul escorting duties while the reaper was on a short vacation. Somehow the angel of death had managed to drag the angel of night along for the ride, and Leliel was helping Azrael out – probably just giving her twin some company. Camael also mentioned that Azrael had left sometime around noon yesterday. Usually it didn't take the angel of death more than a day to do her rounds and the added escorting wouldn't really affect her schedule.

Eventually, Camael moved on to a more... personal topic. The angel of joy had been excited to tell Kemuel all about God visiting the Garden and what He had offered to return with as a present for the younger angel. Kemuel thought the middlemist red flower would be a nice addition to Camael's little garden. Resembling a rose (though lighter in color, larger and more fanned out, concerning the petals), the middlemist reminded Kemuel of Camael's wings.

The angel of joy's wings consisted in shades of the pink and red hues. Along the very tips of her wings, a dark magenta slowly faded into an oriental fuchsia as it went up her pinions and then into a blush pink, nearing the base of her wings where they met her back. The red came in splashes of droplets that coated the tips of her wings and the light colored area where her wings met her back. The red hadn't always been there, Kemuel solemnly remembered, but it did give Camael's wings a certain quality that made them their own.

Each style and color of an angel's wings were unique to that angel – except the twins, whose partners shared the exact same variation of wings. While two different angels might share the same coloring of the feathers, there would always be something else that made their wings distinct. White had always been glorified as the perfect color, though whether that was because of a certain favored archangel, no one really knew.

The more metallic or neutral one's wings were in color, the more likely it was that one was meant for work outside of Heaven. It was just easier to move about on Earth when one's wings weren't neon pink. And it wasn't just Earth that one was sent to. Gabriel was usually anywhere and everywhere, constantly flying to places away from Heaven on his dazzling golden wings for his Messenger duties. Of course, the neutral wing color didn't always mean one had to work outside of Heaven. Uriel's wings were beige in color, but he rarely left Heaven if he didn't have to.

A darker wing color symbolized one's calling for battle – this was something that could actually change over time as the darker the color, the more experience one has. Lucifer was the most glaring exception to this trend while Amenadiel would be a prime example of it. Gabriel – with his shining gold wings – and Michael – whose wings were sterling silver, each feather not unlike a mirror in certain lightings – were also exceptions to this but not as much as Lucifer was.

And then there were the dual colored wings. While the colors of such wings followed the trends that went with the single colored wings, the dual colors often broke the rules too. Of the original family, Raphael was the obvious example to use. The dark bronze base color of the Healer's wings showed his right to go anywhere if need be, but the green flecks that painted patterns along his primaries and secondaries reflected his adamancy to stay in Heaven as the Healer.

Kemuel's own wings were the next primary candidates to be used as an example of dual colored wings. However, her wings' base color of white created an exception – white always created an exception. White never got any darker, no matter how much battle experience one had. And the purple accents that trailed up along her primaries never kept her from Earth.

The colors were simply indicators. Wing color didn't mean everything nor did it dictate in absolutes. There were _always_ exceptions.

A small hand was suddenly waved in front of her face. "Hello— Heaven to Kemuel," Camael called to her sister.

Kemuel leaned back, away from the offending hand, giving it a slight glare before softening on the sight of Camael's expecting look. "I'm sorry. You were saying?"

"I _said_ , Azrael is going to want to know how her _baby_ is doing," the angel of joy repeated.

"Uh…" Kemuel started, trailing off when she didn't have a legitimate answer. It wasn't exactly like she had _needed_ to go check up on Azrael's blade. Besides, she'd been _busy_ _–_ with both the Deckers and Aziraphale. "I didn't exactly have time to visit Uriel's fake grave."

"Yeah, tell that to Azr—" Camael stopped suddenly, looking at something behind Kemuel.

"Tell me what?" a disapproving voice sounded from the same direction Camael was staring.

Kemuel gave her little sister a pleading look, but Cammie just responded with a 'good luck' smile and quickly flew off. The angel of authenticity let out a groan before turning to face her other little sister. She was in so much trouble.

— **o~O~o** —

Several papers fluttered innocently to the ground as Lucifer violently swept everything off of the table, sending a few books crashing elsewhere on the floor.

 _Where the hell could it have gone?!_

If someone followed those directions on that stupid map (like he had when he found it), they'd find that blasted grave out in the middle of nowhere. And if it happened to be a human that found the grave, who knew what would happen. Nothing good because Azrael's blade just happened to be in the 'grave' along with a fake body. Somehow it was Kemuel's doing. It had to be.

Lucifer wasn't sure why he still hadn't told Mum or Amenadiel (or anyone else for that matter) that Uriel wasn't actually dead. They no doubt thought that he had killed Uriel – Mum had seen him stumble back into the penthouse with blood all over him after all. Knowing her, she'd probably told Amenadiel about it at some point or another.

But that wasn't as concerning at the moment as how he couldn't find one thrice-damned map! Dark eyes scoured the surface of the next table he was tearing apart in his search. Where had it gotten to? It's not like it could have just grown legs and walked away— unless some _one_ picked it up and walked away.

Blasted mothers and nosing about in things they weren't supposed to. It wasn't any of her business.

Lucifer collapsed onto his couch with a frustrated groan. It wasn't even seven in the morning yet, and he could tell it was going to be a long day.

— **o~O~o** —

"If you're going to up and disappear like that, give someone a warning first."

Kemuel turned to face her brother as he landed beside her, folding his honey brown wings back – the orange splashes shimmering in the light to look like fire licking his primaries. "And if I recall, I did tell someone. Either way, it's not your job to keep track of me and certainly not to gather everyone on an angel hunt—"

"In my defense, it wasn't _everyone_."

"—to come look for me when you could have just asked Uriel to see where I was," she continued over him, looking Zadkiel in the eyes as she finished. "You shouldn't worry about me so much."

"We can't help it with Her still out there," he admitted casually, bumping shoulders with her and gaining a smile.

His green eyes were drawn down to the book that rested on the balcony ledge. Just looking at it sent shivers down his spine. He pitied the being that ever had to read from the book. At the very least, the being would have nightmares for the rest of his or her life.

To think that it wasn't even the book's fault. It was what was written inside the book that caused such horrors. Every malicious thing that She had ever done to them – the angels, Her playthings, Her prey. And to think that Kemuel was the one to write it all down. Then again, they had all made the book – all of the angels had helped created the thing in one way or another, often without even realizing their involvement.

The book had been made to make the reader remember, to not let him or her forget. It wasn't exactly good to hold on to some of the things the book made one remember, but it wasn't good to just forget what had happened. After all, some things could not be forgiven. There were lines that were not supposed to be crossed.

Zadkiel glanced back up to his sister. Kemuel was looking out over the Silver City, watching their younger brothers and sisters go about their business. Perhaps they didn't— _couldn't_ see past her façade of normalcy, of strength, or her larger-than-life status, but he had grown up with her.

She had practically raised him. He could see the weight that pulled her down when they weren't looking. He could hear the weariness that creeped into her voice when she thought they weren't listening. The ancient sadness in the casting of her gaze, the melancholy cries in the background of her laugh.

Something was coming. Something big. Something she had known about this whole time. Something she wasn't going to reveal to any of them – all to keep them safe. Because that was just who she was. She watched over them, protected them. Even if that meant she was the one paying the price.

"I can _hear_ you worrying," her collected voice broke through his brooding. "If it's really that bad, I'm sure you can talk to Jophiel or Sariel or Raziel. You could even go to Camael to cheer you up—"

"I don't need their help, Kem," he interrupted her, grabbing her by the shoulders to make sure she was looking at him. "I need _you_ to promise me that whenever this is over – _whatever it is_ _–_ that when the dust settles and the air clears, you will still be here— you'll be okay."

"You know I can't do that."

"Then promise me— promise me that you'll try… _Please_ ," he begged her, searching her face for anything to latch onto for hope.

"I swear to Father and everything that is, I will try," Kemuel promised. And then she pulled him into a close embrace, both hugging the other and holding on in fear of letting go.

When honey brown and orange wings moved to wrap around them, white and purple wings moved to meet the other pair. The two contrasting colors were put in juxtaposition against one another yet blending to create a holy union of being. The emotion and support that flowed between them was the love of a familial bond created and grown throughout the long millennia that had past since the dawn of time.

"Do you have to leave for Earth again soon?" Zadkiel quietly asked after what felt like an eternity, not moving to break from the hug.

"Only to get Azrael's blade back after the test," Kemuel murmured back. "It won't even take an hour if there aren't any interruptions."

Green eyes rolled in their sockets. "And now there will be because you just jinxed it."

Kemuel chuckled softly. Light violet colored irises looked up at the forest green orbs. "I'll still be back before you know it," she told him.

"Right, because you're so spritely for your age," he teased.

Kemuel let out a mock scoff. "How dare you accuse me of being old— You're not even five centuries younger than I am!"

In the distance, a few angels who were passing by glanced in the older two's direction at the exclamation. Such playful teasing was common, and the younger angels continued on their way to complete their given tasks, knowing that all was well within Heaven.

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer glanced over at the forensic scientist as he guided her to the site of certain hole in the middle of nowhere. Ella had gone along with it all rather well, accepting the favor without much persuasion – though Lucifer partially resented his part in what she wanted in return.

Somehow, he had managed to convince Maze and Amenadiel to move the fake body (for some reason still, without letting it slip that it was fake) and help him with finding Azrael's blade. Lucifer really shouldn't have been surprised that Amenadiel hadn't been surprised about the grave and what was in it. Lucifer had already figured that Mum had told Amenadiel all about the 'grave' site.

He was going to have to tell them the truth eventually. But how exactly did you correct someone's misinformed thinking without giving away the fact that you had let them think that way for over a month? Especially when he should have just told Mum what happened the moment he entered his penthouse, covered in blood, to find her waiting for him. Lucifer had also had the chance to metaphorically spill his guts about Kemuel to Amenadiel while standing beside the fake grave.

For that matter, it would have been nice if _someone_ had explained to him why the bloody hell there was a _fake body of Uriel_ in a grave with _Azrael's blade_ in the damn hole. And now that thing was out and about somewhere in the hands of a _human_ _–_ Lucifer was getting a headache just thinking about it.

But – by his luck – the blade was only the most recent of his troubles, not the worst. There was still the matter of Kemuel. Lucifer just didn't know how to feel about his sister anymore. It wasn't like she'd just left him for thousands of years in Hell because she was 'done with her mission of helping him be himself' or some nonsense. No, no, nothing like that.

Lucifer shot another glance at Ella Lopez. "Do you have siblings, Ms. Lopez?" he asked on a whim, his mouth spouting out the words before his brain was able to stop the action.

"Yeah, I got five brothers," she answered from where she was following slightly behind him, eyes flicking back and forth from the ground to the forest around her. "Why?"

"Just curious," he replied quickly. They should be close to the grave site by now – another ten minutes at least.

"So it's got nothing to do with that lady from the other week? The one that was with Chloe when Joe Fields was murdered— she's your sister, isn't she?"

Lucifer almost stopped walking. He was suddenly reminded that it was her job to put things together, but she had said it so _casually_ , like it wasn't a big deal. "How did you know?"

Ella gave him an 'I'm not stupid' look before turning her gaze back to the trees in front of them. "Like I said, I have five brothers. I know the look she gave you. It was because you two had a fight or something and she doesn't want to start another one until you've had time to cool off," she explained.

"That _disagreement_ was two weeks ago," he muttered.

Ms. Lopez must have heard him because she let out a huff of laughter, looking off to the side. "Oh yeah, she was definitely smart to avoid a major confrontation."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lucifer asked the question with a slight frown. And he was affronted – most certainly not pouting.

"I'm just sayin'… Look—" Ella stopped in her walking to level with him while looking him in the eyes. "—if you really want my advice on this, then when your sister does try to talk to you again, give her a chance to talk and _listen to her_. She might actually have a legitimate reason for whatever it was you two were fighting over."

Lucifer pursed his lips in thought. The forensic analyst did have a point, and from what he could tell, it was a decent bit of advice… "Come along, Ms. Lopez! We're nearly there," he said suddenly, pushing them back onto the path they had started on earlier.

A breeze brushed over the leaves of the trees throughout the forest. Leaves and branches swayed in earthly tones of green and brown. The blue sky stretched above, reaching beyond view and touching the heavens, with soft white clouds littering the open air. The sun, shining and bright, cast its rays upon the surface of the Earth and gave light to the small planet.

Despite whatever horrors might befall the people that day, the future was bright for the human race. Whether it was up to a plan made by God Himself or a course continually altered by the fleeting decisions of humans, the fate of God's most magnificent creation would not be clouded simply because of the meddling of His Wife. But perhaps the fate of another was not so clear. Only time will tell.

* * *

 **A/N: I will have you know that it was 9:30-ish pm of March 31 where I am when I posted this chapter – I made my deadline! I keep my promises, but what a great procrastinator I am! *sigh* I have no idea when I'm going to get inspiration to get out my next chapter. With luck, you'll have another interlude soon, but no promises there. No God chat, but I guess you could take that authorial comment at the end to be it. Meh.**

Last edited: [March 23, 2018]

* * *

 **shipwreck321:** Why, thank you. That was a very nice review.


	10. Concerning Others

**Chapter 8**

 **Concerning Others**

Israfel hummed along to "Candyman" by Zedd and Aloe Blacc as she walked down the golden street on her way to see Raziel. She passed by Ariel and Haniel on the way as well as Nathaniel – _everyone else_ (not really, but the number was ridiculous) was either working or 'keeping an eye on' Kemuel. Honestly, they could all be so nosy sometimes. Then again, nothing truly exciting ever really happened in Heaven. No, no… all the jazz and pop was on Earth.

Still, no one actually cared to go to Earth. No one wanted to leave _home_. Most were either too scared or worried about what might happen or just that they didn't want to leave others behind. Plus, in the event that most of them did go to Earth, while some of them might want to stay on Earth, the rest would eventually go back home, and therefore create that separation of the family. No one wanted that.

There was already a split. One made a long time ago. But a lot of the younger angels didn't remember what happened, and the majority of the older angels didn't talk about it. Israfel was more or less in the middle of those two categories. While she didn't remember everything that happened, she remembered enough, and what she did remember did not consist of happy thoughts.

Not that that had anything to do with why she was going to visit Raziel this fine afternoon… or was it morning? Israfel could never tell when God kept the Sun of Heaven directly above everything. Usually she'd have some reference to time because one of her brothers or sisters would know the time on Earth (because time really wasn't all that relevant in Heaven, but whatever). And yet Israfel always lost track of the time due to how caught up she got when listening to songs.

Of course, that didn't bother her for the most part. Israfel was the angel of songs after all. It was only natural that she constantly have a song going on in her head, a song which often reflected her mood. She could also sing every song known to man on Earth and in Heaven as well as being able to name any song by the time she heard a couple lines or so of the lyrics – and sometimes even the instrumental bits if the song was that well-worth remembering.

But anyways, Israfel was going to visit Raziel because the angel of mysteries (or keeper of secrets, Raziel had claim to both titles) had asked Israfel to come by the other day. The angel of song had no reason not to drop by, which was how Israfel ended up quite literally bumping into Anael.

"Anna! I'm so sorry— I wasn't looking where I was going," Israfel apologized, placing a hand on her younger sister's shoulder to steady her when it looked like Anael might fall over at the collision.

"Oh, no, no, it's fine," Anael replied, waving Israfel off. "I wasn't exactly looking where I was going either."

Israfel pursed her lips, that protective older sibling urge kicking in. She should at least make sure Anael would be okay until she was with another angel who would be able to make doubly sure the young angel was okay. "Well, you could join me for some company if you're headed my way," she offered.

"You wouldn't happen to be going towards the Seer's Setting, would you?" Anael asked somewhat shyly.

Actually, that was exactly where Israfel was going. She told Anael as such and suggested that they go together, which Anael delightfully agreed to. As they continued on journey to the outer edges of the Silver City where the Seer's Setting was located (and really, it didn't need to be called that but that's what Raziel and some of her fellow 'seers' wanted it to be called), Israfel and Anael caught up on recent events.

Apparently, apart from going to the Seer's Setting to consult with a certain soul, Anael was going to Earth sometime soon to take over one of the stations on Earth so the angel currently there could take a break. Anael was also going to be distributing a few miracles in the region she was stationed in. Though it wouldn't be Anael's first time on Earth, it would be her first time answering prayers – taking on the role of a miracle worker. Anael must have been on Barachiel's good side if he was putting her in charge of a few miracles for the first time without any supervision.

In turn, Israfel told Anael about all of her favorite new songs that the humans had come out with. The list was a little lengthy since Israfel and Anael hadn't seen each other in a while, but they were both caught up by the time they reached the temple-like structure of the Seer's Setting.

The two angels greeted the oracles and prophets who had requested to temporarily leave their personal heavens to see the angel Seers for… seer reasons. Israfel was one in a great majority who didn't really understand the angels who could see into the many different futures. Sure, the concept was easy enough to grasp, but just… Who needed to see the future nowadays with free will and everything?

Anael had found the soul she was looking for at the entrance of the Setting, and Israfel gave her little sister a long hug and heartfelt farewell. They probably wouldn't see each other for a few years since Anael was going to Earth. That was just what happened regarding angels that were stationed on Earth.

It took a bit of searching, but Israfel finally found Raziel, who was speaking quietly with Remiel, which really wasn't all that uncommon as Remiel was the main angel of visions and Raziel being the angel of mysteries. Though with the look on their faces, maybe the conversation wasn't all that common for them...

"Raziel!" Israfel called to her older sister.

Remiel's eyes snapped in Israfel's direction, and he whispered a quiet but harsh statement to Raziel before storming off, heading towards the main, innermost chambers of the Setting.

"What was that about..?" Israfel asked in a mutter. She was somewhere in between offended and confused at Remiel's agitated (more like _aggressive_ ) mood.

Raziel sighed, her gray eyes still lingering on the empty hallway Remiel left by. "He's... concerned about a vision he's received several times over the last year or so.."

Concerned, Israfel frowned. "What vision?"

"Hopefully something that won't come to pass," the angel of mysteries answered cryptically. Shaking her head, Raziel changed the subject. "I suppose you're wondering why I asked for you to be here today."

"A bit," Israfel admitted. "But it can't be earthshattering if you're brushing off something Remiel's worried about."

"About that…" Raziel started hesitantly, as if she wasn't sure how to word what she was going to say next. "Remember when Gabriel went down to Earth with Amenadiel about three decades ago?"

To be honest, Israfel didn't actually remember the specifics of what Raziel was referring to, but the angel of song did know it. So she nodded.

"Well, we – and I mean Remiel and I – believe that the human Lucifer has taken a liking to may be a part of why they went to Earth."

"And you're telling this to _me_?" Israfel asked incredulously – if not dumbfoundedly. "Why?"

"Because Remiel has seen you on Earth sometime within this next year."

Israfel blinked and then tilted her heard to the side. "He has?"

"Yes," Raziel affirmed, gaining an exasperated edge to her tone.

"I don't see why," Israfel began to dispute. "I, like, _never_ go to Earth… except for the occasional, once-in-a-human-lifetime concerts… Okay, so I like to go to Earth _sometimes_ — What does that have to do with Lucifer or Gabriel or Amenadiel?"

"From what Remiel and I understand of what we've seen, Lucifer and Chloe Decker are quite literally a match made in Heaven…"

"Okay," Israfel drawled, gesturing for Raziel to go on.

The angel of mysteries and keeper of secrets took a deep breath and then suddenly rushed through all of her next words, letting them tumble from her mouth. "Chloe-Decker-may-or-may-not-be-a-miracle-child-that's-supposedly-meant-to-be-with-Lucifer-in-his-journey-to-redemption-in-the-eyes-of-both-Heaven-and-Earth-as-well-as-in-helping-him-find-eternal-happiness-as-was-intended-by-Father-ever-since-Lucifer-was-cast-down-to-Hell."

"Uh… what?" Israfel had a hard time catching all of that.

Raziel huffed a frustrated growl. "Chloe Decker and Lucifer are destined to be together—"

"No, no, I got that part," Israfel cut in. "What was the part about Chloe being a miracle child? What's that supposed to mean?"

Raziel gave her a look. "You remember the last time there was a miracle child helped conceived by Father?"

"Well, yeah, kinda hard to forget that kid, but— Wait! Seriously?!" Israfel stared at her older sister. "You're joking."

"No. I'm not."

"Well, then you're mixing up famous human historical figures."

"Me _and_ Remiel _and_ Jeremiel _and_ Daniel?"

"… Fine," Israfel relented, still making her skepticism known through her doubtful expression. "But, _again_ , what does it have to do with me?"

Raziel glanced around, as if making sure that they were alone. "You're going to shift the most likely future to a preferred one— one in which you create a catalyst that will keep Lucifer from making a grievous mistake... something that would tear a rift between him and Chloe."

Israfel raised an appraising eyebrow. "You're a shipper," she breathed.

"A what?"

"It's— never mind," Israfel cut herself off, shaking her head and backtracking. "But you want Chloe and Lucifer together, right? Like, Team Deckerstar?"

Frowning, Raziel looked at Israfel as if the angel of song had lost her mind but eventually nodded, going along with it. "Yes..?"

"Well then," Israfel started, smiling like the cat who ate the mouse, "group meets are on Mondays, and the feels sessions are after the fangirling parties."

"Maybe I'll go to one of these parties once you make sure that everything goes according to plan."

"You're gonna regret not going sooner," the angel of song warned, pointing a finger at the angel of mysteries. A conspiratorial grin took over the smile on her face. "Now give me _all_ the details..."

— **o~O~o** —

Hands on hips, Azrael stood in the doorway, barring Kemuel from leaving the room, and the angel of death was determined to make sure the angel of authenticity knew why she couldn't leave this room. It wasn't like Azrael was alone in this decision— No, no. This was unanimously agreed upon by the Council (unanimously in terms of all thirteen of them except Kemuel).

"You are not going to Earth," Azrael repeated for what felt like the hundredth time but was really only the ninth. "How many different ways do I have to spell it out?"

"You can't keep me in Heaven forever, Azrael," Kemuel reiterated with a glare. "And there's no reason for you to keep me here either."

Azrael shrugged at that. Kemuel was right – they couldn't keep her in Heaven forever, but this was a temporary thing anyway. "Oh, I don't know about that, Kem. I can think of a few."

"Which would be?" Kemuel asked, narrowing her eyes as if she were daring the younger angel to give her a legitimate answer.

But give Kemuel a legitimate answer Azrael would. "The more time you spend on Earth the more likely Mother would find out about your interference. She never knew about you putting everything together, only that you were in charge of bringing Her to Hell with Him for Her punishment."

Kemuel glared heatedly at Azrael. "So?" Kemuel scoffed. "She's bound to find out eventually."

"Earth is making you _reckless_ ," the angel of death growled, her dark eyes flashing dangerously. "You need to be more careful, Kem."

"I am being careful," the angel of authenticity argued.

Azrael rolled her eyes. "Because interacting with Chloe Decker and her daughter is careful."

"The Goddess hates humans," Kemuel exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air in a show of exasperation. "She wouldn't bother asking them about me even if She knew I was around."

"That's not the _point_ , Kemuel!"

"No— _the point_ is that you and the others are forgetting that _I can take care of myself_!" The angel of authenticity's voice boomed and echoed throughout the building, causing a slight tremor to run along the ground.

Azrael was stunned into silence for several minutes, needing the time to recollect herself. That itself was a hard task, considering the way Kemuel retained her fuming expression the whole while. Still, Azrael wasn't about to crack just because her sister was directing her fury at her – and the fury being expressed right then was nothing compared to... well, a time before.

"You are not going to Earth," Azrael repeated calmly.

And that was that.

— **o~O~o** —

"What'd you do, Rae?" Camael asked somewhat warily. She picked at a few stray dead leaves, removing them from the plant she was working on, before looking back up to her older sister.

The angel of death paused in the middle of running through her sword techniques. Though she was still poised for a thrust lunge, Azrael easily relayed the… argument that had occurred between herself and Kemuel. By the time she had finished telling Camael what happened, Azrael was back to fluidly moving through her technical exercises.

"—and it wasn't just me who made this decision, Cammie. Everyone else on the Council voted to have Kemuel stay in Heaven for at least another week."

Frowning, Camael scrunched up her nose at a sudden thought. "You mean, you guys took a vote behind Kemuel's back?"

"It was regarding her," Azrael replied – smoothly transitioning into a low crouch, quickly passing through a fourth position _plié_ during a _rond de jambe_ of the right leg before spinning around and ending all the way back in front with her weight now balanced evenly in both legs. "She wasn't supposed to be there."

"Yeah, but _you went behind her back_ ," Camael stressed.

Azrael stopped her workout to sit down next to the angel of joy. "Even you have to agree that she's spending too much time on Earth. You know what happens to angel who _aren't_ assigned to Earth _stay_ on Earth for too long."

"They fall," Camael conceded with a glance to the side. "But that doesn't happen to everyone," she protested, looking back to her sister. "Besides, Kemuel hasn't been on Earth as much as Leliel. She's not supposed to be down there but she goes with you most of the time."

"That's—"

"If you say that it's not the same, I'm going to have to politely ask you to leave," Camael warned.

Azrael sighed but didn't continue her statement. Leaning back, she laid her head against the trunk of the tree directly behind her. "Who knew that everything would change in less than a month," she huffed.

"Dad for one."

"Don't start that," Azrael groaned, though her smile gave away her amusement. "So I hear that you were talking to Him the other day…"

Camael let out a small giggle, picking up on the proffered change of topic. "Yeah, did you know He changed His mustache and beard? His hair is shorter and darker now, too."

Azrael gasped in mock horror. "No! He loved that beard!" A shit-eating grin spread across her face. "Remember that one time when Jehoel accidently set it on fire—"

"Shhh! We're not supposed to talk about that," Camael cried out, a burst of laughter already pouring from her lips.

"But— but it wasn't until Puriel had a storm cloud form over them to put out the fire that anything happened!" Azrael exclaimed, continuing over Camael's fits of snorts and giggles. "And then Kem came by to see what was going on, and everyone was just absolutely soaked to the bone!"

The two angels continued to laugh together until finally Azrael calmed down and looked off into the distance, reminiscing the days long past. That had been back when Kemuel still took secret trips down to Hell to visit Lucifer. The event had been the most exciting thing to happen during the whole millennia.

And now the 'excitement' was overflowing – spilling out of the cup, so to say.

Personally, Azrael would prefer to just go back to the way things were before the whole mess with Her being on Earth or even before Amenadiel went down to get Lucifer to go back to Hell. And honestly – God must have known that Amenadiel was a poor choice if He really wanted to send Lucifer back to his domain. _Seriously_ , you don't pick Amenadiel for a diplomatic errand.

But here they all were.

Now, don't get Azrael wrong – she loved her family, but she would also do anything to protect them. From others and themselves, even if that meant they hated her for it. It wasn't like being the angel of death was popular in the first place. The very least she could do to contribute to her large family was to keep them from the thing she represented.

Azrael recognized the danger Kemuel was in. Azrael had seen a great many things due to her job, presiding over the reapers who escorted souls to their final destination and occasionally having to escort souls herself. She had been to Earth, Heaven, Hell and even Purgatory. Death was not kind.

And Lucifer was smack dab in the middle of a potential massacre. Perhaps it wouldn't happen for another few months or even a year, but Kemuel knew what _Mother_ could do. She obviously wanted back into Heaven, probably wanted revenge on God for imprisoning Her in Hell. All of the angels would be in the line of fire. Especially Kemuel.

The Council knew this, and so – _to protect their older sister_ – they were going to have her stay away from the catalyst, away from Earth, away from Lucifer. Because Lucifer hurt those around him – intentionally or not, knowingly or not. Either way, that was what he did back then, too.

Samael, the poison of God. Of those He created with Her, Samael was His favorite. Samael had been the _perfect_ combination of his Parents, so much like both of Them. God had made His favoritism clear while She kept Her opinion fleeting, constantly changing who Her favorite son was, (never a favorite daughter), but They had both had a particular fondness of Samael.

Not that it had done Samael any good in the end.

Azrael couldn't say that Lucifer was any better off. Samael and Lucifer were essentially the same being – the fundamental difference having to do with Lucifer's odd interest in humans. Nope, not much difference when it came to his self-centeredness, haughty attitude, immaturity, maybe not full on arrogance but ignorance of things when it came to others around him. They were still the same in that regard.

But that was where Samael/Lucifer and God began to have differences. Aside from all of the omni-s on God's part, He had also learned from His actions, His mistakes. He knew what His effects on others could cause and knew not to be so using.

Lucifer either didn't realize or didn't care that He had changed. He obviously also didn't care to realize what She would do to Heaven if She ever set foot in the Silver City again. He probably wanted a good ol' Mom and Dad fight that would end up with Them destroying each other.

Fat lot of good that would do. Talk about killing off any chance of a life for himself. The Universe itself would act out against Lucifer for (no matter how indirectly) killing God. God's wish for Lucifer to be happy would become void.

* * *

 **A/N: Welp, I'm back. Sort of. It's only been... two months? Who knows how long it'll take me to write the next chapter? Hey, at least this was, in fact, a chapter and not an interlude or some author's note saying that I'm giving this up, which would never happen by the way. I don't know why, but it's harder for me to come up with what I want with this fic than any of my other stories, so you're just going to have to bear with me. Maybe I won't take so long next time since it is summer break for me right now.**

 **Again, you'll notice there really wasn't any God chat (I wonder what He could be up to...), but, also again, there's a bit of authorial comment. Take it as you will. Hinting at things is fun. And the reason there isn't much of Kemuel is because while this story is technically about her, it's also about the rest of the angels too. I've been giving a couple of them a bit of time to shine.**

Last edited: [March 23, 2018]

* * *

 **Fgh56:** Badass enough (in reference to chapter 9)? If not, I apologize. I – for the life of me – cannot write proper fight scenes or anything remotely intimidating. I mean, I probably could, but it'd have like fifty revised versions.

 **Thatgirl221B:** I'm working on this. I promise!


	11. Death's Reckoning

**Chapter 9**

 **Death's Reckoning**

Drink in one hand, Azrael's blade in the other, Lucifer turned his gaze out the window as the elevator doors closed. Though the night sky still refused to give him answers, tonight he was grateful for its presence – open, whole, receptive, _there_. The night sky wasn't deceptive. It simply was.

But it could be so much more all at once. The stars it held within its black canvas were dazzling. And the moon, a mirror to the sun, cast its silvery light upon the land. The night was dark, but it was also bright.

She had compared him to the night once. It had been an offhanded comment – as if she hadn't really thought about it before it slipped from her lips, though she didn't take it back. She never explained why she had made the comparison, and Lucifer had been left to wonder. Even now, as he stared out into that dark expanse, he still could only barely fathom what she had meant.

Letting out a sigh, Lucifer turned and walked back to his bar's counter. After downing the rest of his drink, he set the glass back on the countertop, and with a wary look at Azrael's blade, he set it down too, resting his hand on its handle.

He had lost his temper. Quite quickly, almost too easily. It had been like a fiery rage had suddenly engulfed him and refused to let go until the challenge against him was taken back. What had been an internal defensive need to make himself clear became an outward lashing out.

Lucifer took his hand off of the blade, stepping away from it. He didn't think it would have been able to have any effect on him – and it didn't, not in the way it affected humans. He felt no strong urges to go out on a killing spree, but there was a deeper stirring. One that he'd rather not be feeling right now. Or at all for that matter.

But he had the blade. Now all he had to do was get rid of it – for good this time. Hopefully (as if anything ever went according to any plan) without celestial intervention that somehow managed to prevent the blade from being taken away. Hopefully the celestial intervention (assuming that there would be one, which was likely considering the increasing involvement regarding all of the angels) would actually take the stupid thing back.

Lucifer wasn't sure what he'd do with the blade otherwise. Hiding it in the woods obviously wasn't a good idea, whoever's genius plan that was anyway. Then again, he was the one who had the map leading there and thought it would be fine to leave the blade buried in a fake grave.

Maybe he would have to keep it closer at hand. In the wall perhaps? Surely, Mum wouldn't think to look there. As long as she didn't find it as easily as she had that stupid map. Lucifer should have just burned that thing.

At the fluttering sound of wings, Lucifer turned, plastering a smile on his face. "Kemuel, if this is about the blade you left here..." He trailed off, smile faltering, at the sight of the angel – who was most definitely _not_ Kemuel – leaning back on the glass railing of his balcony.

The dark-skinned angel of death smiled, her even darker eyes somehow shining in the dim lighting. She looked more like a shadow than anything, only her smile and the whites of her eyes giving any indication that she had a different color than black on her being.

He corrected his greeting. "Azrael. Lovely seeing you here, though I was expecting someone else… Come for your blade, I take it?"

"Amenadiel wasn't wrong about the blade not belonging on Earth," she murmured.

Lucifer frowned at that. While he hadn't interacted much with the younger angels, he had gotten to know some of the older ones, like Azrael herself. He didn't envy the angel of death's job. He didn't feel bad for her either. At least she didn't have to be in the presence of the damned souls that she helped deliver to Hell every bloody minute. Azrael had barely given Lucifer a glance whenever she dropped off another set of souls.

"So then take it back up to wherever you keep this thing," Lucifer scoffed, waving a hand at in a wild gesture. Turning his back on the angel of death, he couldn't help but stare at the blade, think about what it could do, could cause…

"No can do."

Lucifer spun back around. "What?! Why not?" he demanded.

"Per Dad's orders," Azrael answered simply, her head slightly tilting to the side along with an eyebrow being raised.

Azrael didn't have time to react before a hand was wrapped around her throat, pushing her over the railing to the point where she was dangerously close to being pushed over the edge. She kept one hand on the railing and the other she used to grasp at Lucifer's arm. The angel didn't need to breathe, not really, but that didn't keep the tightening grip around her neck from hurting. There would most likely be bruises the following day.

"What does He have to do with this, huh?" Lucifer seethed, shooting his red gaze upwards. "What do You want?!"

Azrael wasn't able to answer. Lucifer didn't want one from her anyhow. Still, Azrael wasn't fond of being pushed around like this, especially not when she was having a relatively bad day already.

All it took was a simple push to send Lucifer flying off of her. Archangel or not, Lucifer had cut off his wings and eventually burned them. In terms of power, any of the angels old enough to remember his fall could hold their own against him. Azrael had been around for a good while before Samael fell.

Lucifer's head hit the end of his couch with a soft _thud_ , though at the moment the only thing hurt was his pride. He didn't get back up immediately, stalled by the sight of Azrael's midnight black wings that blended into the sky behind her. But she wasn't letting anything else of her true appearance show (yet), which meant she wasn't completely pissed off (yet).

And for some reason, Lucifer took that as a challenge. It also seemed that Azrael was encouraging his reaction to said challenge, which really just made him all the more riled. Red eyes glared into almost black ones – where there was a hint of silver beginning to peak through.

Her head cocked to the side and an obvious smirk on her face, Azrael fanned her wings out in a daring display. _Your move,_ it said.

Now, logically, it really should have been clear that one should proceed with reason instead of letting the acts turn into a full on fight; however, apparently, Lucifer just wasn't connecting to the more logical part of his brain tonight… So, they fought.

It didn't last long. There were many punches thrown, legs kicked, elbows jabbed. But Lucifer got in very few blows. Of course, Azrael only got one or two in herself. Many of the attacks were either blocked or dodged. Unfortunately for Lucifer, Azrael managed to kick him in the nuts and then pinned him face down to the ground while he was stunned.

"This is not a position I like to be in," Lucifer muttered, his nose somewhat squashed into the tile beneath him.

"And _I_ don't like to be hanging over a balcony railing several stories above the ground," she retorted back, grinding her knee further into his lower back to put emphasis on her words.

Lucifer knew how to get out of this awkward hold. If he could just—

The wrist of his arm that was being pulled back was suddenly twisted harshly. A soft grunt was all that indicated the pain that ran up his arm. Clearly it had been a discouragement to him taking back control of the situation. Still, how had she even known what he'd been about to do?

"Dad had me get extra lessons from Michael for whenever I had to travel to Purgatory," Azrael answered the unspoken question. "Uriel might have been using patterns to be one step ahead of your every move, but I'm just using _skill_. And you're rusty."

Lucifer let out a scoff. Though he did have to admit, the statement wasn't all that inaccurate. "Fine, so you were able to best me in a little spat. Good for you."

"Now, now, dear Luci, don't be a sore loser," Azrael chuckled above him. "I can't blame you for being out of practice while I'm still in my prime… even though I'm not _that_ much younger than you."

"Will you get off of me now?" Lucifer grumbled, not missing the implication that he was _old_.

"Promise to apologize to Kemuel next time you see her, and I'll think about it."

Lucifer's face scrunched up into a frown. He did _not_ promise to apologize. When he did ever apologize, it would be on his terms (and most likely spur of the moment) – not because someone threatened him into it. "Why would I do that?"

"You've got to be kidding me," he heard her mutter. "I don't see why she keeps trying with you," she continued, louder. "You're so dense."

"Enlighten me, then," Lucifer huffed, squirming in place a little bit. The position was already uncomfortable without her now pressing his face into the ground with her hand that wasn't twisting his wrist.

Azrael let out a sigh as she loosened her grip and backed off marginally, giving Lucifer some more room to move. It wasn't like she was _actually_ trying to hurt him, but Lucifer sometimes needed weird forms of persuasion when one wanted him to listen. Of course, forcing Lucifer to do anything was a bad idea, but some force was required when you were in a pinch to get him _to stop_ in order to listen.

"Do I really have to spell it out?" She then leaned down to whisper in his ear. "She's having to sneak down here to see you and make sure you get your happy ending, and what do you do? You throw a tantrum about it."

Lucifer frowned. "I—"

"Ah-ah! I'm not finished," she tsked. "Now, I didn't think this would have to be explained to you, but _you don't get mad at the angel who_ wanted _to go to Hell to visit you_ — especially _when she's risking her life just by coming here!_ "

Lucifer was cringing by the end as Azrael was then yelling right beside his ear. And apparently she still wasn't done yet.

"What do you think's going to happen when Mom finds out Kem was the one who set Her up to go to Hell?! She's already in Her sights because she helped lock Her up, but _Mom_ is a vengeful bitch who doles out unjust punishments! She will _destroy_ Kemuel!

"A lot of us don't care if you stay on Earth or even about what you do down here. Just don't drag Heaven down with you, you selfish prick," she hissed into his ear as she finished.

Lucifer let her words sink in. She had a point, obviously. And the single fact that the others in Heaven didn't mind that he was on Earth made his chest burn with something he didn't quite want to recognize. Still, she had called him a selfish prick, and while that wasn't entirely untrue…

Azrael let out a noise of alarm as she was abruptly thrown off of Lucifer. He scrambled to his feet as she rolled backwards into a crouch. She was glaring at him, albeit with a hint of respect. Their gazes broke away from each other as Lucifer's eyes were drawn to the blade still on the counter, not all that far away.

"Why does Dad want that thing on Earth?" he questioned after a moment.

Azrael folded her wings onto her back as she stood slowly. "In case of an emergency."

"It's going to _cause_ an emergency," Lucifer shot back, his eyes keeping track of her movements.

She shrugged. "Not my idea to keep it here," she responded while crossing her arms.

Lucifer felt the severe temptation to stride over and smack the other angel. _Of course_ it wasn't her idea – he could tell that Azrael wanted her blade on Earth just as much as he did, which was _not at all_. Not only could the blade obliterate celestials like himself, but it could also urge any human with a modicum of motive to kill Chloe. It had already come close to taking both of their lives. Lucifer wasn't about to risk that again.

"And… Kemuel?" he inquired with barely a hint of hesitance.

There had to be a reason why she wasn't here. Otherwise, Lucifer _knew_ that she would have come to retrieve the blade herself – if only to visit him. Because that was who she was (as he had come to realize). He had to admit to himself – albeit somewhat reluctantly at first – that Kemuel did genuinely care for him, and that she had gotten mad at him for taking her care the wrong way.

(Look at Lucifer being self-introspective. He's all grown up now… kind of.)

Which was why he had anticipating for Kemuel to come for the blade, not its owner. Still, Azrael's presence wasn't completely unwarranted. Lucifer could even think of a number of other angels that could have come to retrieve the angel of death's blade. That didn't keep him from being somewhat worried (just slightly) about Kemuel's whereabouts.

"Kem is... indisposed. The Council wants her safe, so she's been grounded indefinitely— in the Silver City that is," Azrael answered carefully.

Something in Lucifer fell at the news. It would appear that he wouldn't be seeing his little sister for a while. Who knew how it might be before the thirteen member Council of Angels decided that it was _safe_ for Kemuel to visit Earth again... But Kemuel was a bit of a rule-breaker despite her typical angelic morals. If she really wanted to see Lucifer again, she would – Council or no.

— **o~O~o** —

Chloe took another sip of her wine, breaking her gaze from the restaurant's entrance only as she set the glass back down. He wasn't answering any of her texts. It was getting late, and the time she and Lucifer had agreed upon had already come and passed. Clearly, she was wrong in thinking that maybe Lucifer had asked her here as something important enough to come as well.

"Hello, Ms. Decker."

She almost jumped when a man – _not Lucifer_ – sat down in the chair across from her, settling into the seat as if it was him that was meant to be there and not Lucifer. She wasn't quite sure if that disturbed her more than the stranger knowing her name. She was going with not.

"How do you know who I am?" she demanded, keeping her voice calm.

A flicker of a smile crossed the man's face, and he shook his head. Strands of copper hair fell down, covering part of his face, before he brushed them back. Chloe noticed his weird eyes – they were practically shining even the low lighting of the restaurant. That didn't even take into account the odd shade of green the man's eyes were either.

"I'm one of Lucifer's younger brothers. Of course I know you," he answered somewhat cryptically.

Chloe was left unsure as to what she should say next. This guy was the third sibling of Lucifer's that she had met now, and that wasn't including all of the ones that he had mentioned to her. Just how many brothers and sisters did he have? Not that she was judging.

A waiter came by, and Lucifer's brother ordered a water. Chloe waited until the waiter came back, gave the stranger in front of her the water and then left at the man's polite "thank you" before she asked him, "So, do you have a name?"

As much as she wanted to cringe at the bluntness of her own question, she kept a straight face that didn't betray her emotions. But it didn't look like she had offended Lucifer's brother. In fact, he had a small smile on his face as he set his water down after taking a sip.

"The name's Zadkiel," he answered.

Chloe couldn't help but let out an irritated huff. Of course he was named after what was most likely an angel. That seemed to be a trend in Lucifer's family. It made her wonder how religious their parents were. Again, not judging, but Chloe had looked up some of the names that had been mentioned to her. Some of them were obscure while others she couldn't even find.

She narrowed her eyes at this 'Zadkiel'. "Is there a reason you're here or do you normally just drop in on a person's night out?"

That smile of his twitched into being, and he tilted his head marginally to the side. "You and I both know by now that he's not coming. It's not either of your faults, but I thought I'd save you from having to sit here all by yourself. I'll even pay for your dinner if you'd like," he offered.

Chloe figured that it wasn't the worst thing Zadkiel could have done. It was… nice of him. It still wasn't going to convince her to let Lucifer off the hook that easily for skipping out on their dinner arrangement. And since when did Lucifer need one of his brothers to cover for him? If anything, this was ticking her off more. Then again, she wasn't finding Zadkiel's company unpleasant. He was far more amicable than Lucifer in a sense – kind of like Kemuel.

"Fine," she said after a moment. "But really, why are you here?"

"Would you believe me if I told you I'm here to assure that the probability of something occurring becomes nonexistent?"

Chloe stared at him. What the hell was that supposed to mean? She got the feeling that he wasn't talking about her (failing) relationship with Lucifer, but that didn't answer her question. "Not really, no."

"Have a bit of faith, Ms. Decker," Zadkiel admonished her, though in a somewhat teasing manner. "To be completely honest with you, though, I'm merely stalling you from leaving until Amenadiel can take care of a… complication."

The waiter arrived with her dinner before she could form a response. She didn't remember ordering anything, but there was now a simple yet fancy sirloin sitting on the table in front of her. Zadkiel's dish came out not a minute later – a salad with some kind of balsamic vinegar as the dressing. Okay, when did _he_ order something?

"A complication?" Chloe half asked, half demanded. Whatever was left of her appetite – if she'd had any to begin with – was long gone in favor of questioning Lucifer's supposed younger brother.

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about now. A few minutes ago, yes, but not anymore," he said with a bit of cheer in his voice, clearly pleased that whatever he had kept her from had safely passed.

"You're very sure of yourself," she replied bluntly, glancing down at her silverware and then at her phone – no new notifications.

Zadkiel gave her a brilliant smile. "Well, yes, I have to be in order to manage the rest of my siblings."

Chloe blinked. As odd as that comment was, it made a bit of sense. And she supposed that she could apply it to what she knew of Lucifer's family and then Lucifer himself. But the word that stuck out most was 'manage'. That was the word that made the comment odd. It wouldn't have pricked at her attention much if Zadkiel had used 'take care of' or 'keep an eye on'. But no, he'd used 'manage'.

It implied that there were many of these siblings, and it made her wonder just what kind of family Lucifer had. Adoption. That would explain how Lucifer had such diversity in his siblings, but the way he talked about Amenadiel and his other brothers and sisters, you would think that there was some kind of separation in the family that split some of the older siblings from the younger sets (assuming that there were more than just one 'generation' of younger siblings of course) – maybe even a hierarchy of sorts.

It could also just be that Chloe was reading too deeply into his words of choice. Yeah, right.

Chloe's mind suddenly caught back up with time, and she realized that Zadkiel had finished his salad while she still hadn't even touched her steak. He didn't seem offended, just marginally amused, watching her with a curious stare as if she were a puzzle he was halfheartedly attempting to solve.

The waiter came by again to take Zadkiel's empty plate. He was gone only a minute before he came back around with some kind of box and set it down on the side of the table.

"Can't just let a good sirloin go to waste," Lucifer's brother mused. He must have noticed her blank glance at the box. He must have also then decided that he would comment on it and put her dinner into the take-out box.

She was pretty sure a restaurant like this wouldn't normally have a take-out box. Odd.

Zadkiel flashed that smile of his at her again. "May I walk you to your car?"

Chloe really didn't want to let him. She really didn't. But she also didn't want to be rude. She told him that he could.

It never even came to her attention that a dark skinned man confronted a woman (with a detonator in hand) intent to kill her in the alley beside the restaurant not an hour before she left.

* * *

 **A/N: It's been a long time. I know, but today is a special occasion (I'm officially another year older now) and I figured you people should get a present, too. My apologies if this chapter seems a bit forced or rushed.**

Last edited: [March 29, 2018]

* * *

 **Guest:** Sorry to burst your bubble, but, uh… Rae and Luci really only got into that fight because they were both having bad days and they kind of ticked each other off. And technically while they did come out to a draw, Lucifer got the upper hand at the end, so I suppose you could say he was the one who won. But anyways, you just gave me an idea… XD

 **shipwreck321:** Yay!

 **Fangirl0103:** Will do! (I'm trying at least, lol)


	12. Another Interlude

**Interlude 2**

 **Another Interlude**

Kemuel liked these new _humans_ … Well, she thought they were a bit simple-minded, but she liked them. They were… different, though she had yet to decide for herself if it was a good different or a bad different.

The humans had so much potential to do both good and evil, to be swayed to either light or dark and possibly over to the other side without warning. For now though, they seemed harmless. Adam was a humble soul, dedicated to taking care of God's creations within the Garden of Eden. Meanwhile, Eve was a bit more wild in spirit, preferring to explore and experiment and learn whenever she was away from her husband.

Kemuel had yet to actually go down to Earth to meet the two humans, but she continued to observe them from afar in Heaven as well as listen to her older brothers' tales of their interactions with the humans. Michael and Amenadiel were indifferent to their presence while Gabriel and Raphael were rather enthusiastic about their Father's new creation. Samael didn't seem to mind the humans much, but there was always this slight tone of disdain and distaste whenever he talked about them, as if he thought they were so far below him and the rest of their family.

Most of the younger angels would make up their minds about what they thought of the humans eventually, but Kemuel had the angels' full support and respect. Her opinion of the humans would likely sway the younger angels' own reasoning. She had to be careful and sure about her decision to truly love humans or not.

It was as she was passing the main house that she heard their voices. She didn't think much of it at first, but then certain words stuck out to her, and she couldn't help but listen in. She cloaked her presence (just like her older brothers had taught her how – "almost as good as me," Gabriel had bragged) – and hid beneath the sill of the window, focusing on her sense of hearing in order to pick up the words more clearly.

"—wouldn't it be better if the humans weren't around to distract your Father from you and your brothers?"

Kemuel's brow furrowed at the sound of Her voice. Kemuel hadn't thought that She disliked the humans. The Goddess of Creation hadn't truly expressed her opinion of the matter yet, though if what Kemuel was overhearing was anything to go by…

"Mum, I can't just go to Dad and tell Him that this new creation of His is… _defective_ at best."

Kemuel's frown grew even deeper. Was that what Samael really thought about the humans? She hadn't thought he held so low an opinion of them. True, Kemuel could see why Samael thought the humans lower than the angels and God and His Wife. The humans were… uncontrollable at times – a trait that angels were taught was not exactly _good_.

But that didn't mean Father should be told that He should get rid of His newest creation.

Kemuel felt something heavy settle in her stomach. This wasn't right – both the conversation she was overhearing and her own spying. But from what she was hearing... It was almost as if Mother was convincing Samael to rebel against Father, which was a contradiction in itself. Samael was Father's favorite. Everyone knew that. Why would he ever jeopardize such a position? Especially when it would result in nothing good for either of them.

What Kemuel _really_ didn't understand was why Mother was suggesting and supporting such acts against God. Kemuel knew that Their relationship had been a bit strained ever since He made the other angels – all of Kemuel's younger siblings – but that was just a tendency of His. He liked creating things, even though She didn't like the idea of Him creating things without Her.

Personally, Kemuel thought that Mother was a bit selfish in that sense. It was like whenever Zachariel and Nathaniel got into an argument over how some building or another was made. In other words, Kemuel found Her jealousy of Him rather childish – not that Kemuel would voice this opinion to either of Them. That would just be disrespectful.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey, lookie, another interlude (and titled so)! I have about half of the next real chapter written out, but I'm not too sure on when it'll be ready for posting just yet.**

Last edited: [March 29, 2018]


	13. Troubled Interference

**Chapter 10**

 **Troubled Interference**

Linda Martin was many things. Most notably, she was the Devil's therapist. She was also his demon companion's therapist. She was even friends with Lucifer's brother, Amenadiel, and somehow this must have all added up to her being the go-to person for the rest Lucifer's family.

"Dr. Martin, I'm glad to see you're feeling better," the angel greeted her right as Linda was about to step into her office. This angel was the same one who… helped her that night that Lucifer showed Linda his true face. _Kemuel_ , if she remembered correctly.

"Better, yes," Linda responded, opening the door enough to let Lucifer's sister in. "Thanks to you I'm sure, though I doubt anything will ever be back to normal, knowing what I know."

Closing the office door behind her, Kemuel gave Linda a reassuring smile. "Oh, all I did was help your mind process what you saw. The rest was you… And nothing is ever truly normal, is it?"

Linda mulled over the question as she sat down in the chair behind her desk. "No, I guess not." She moved around a few of her things, rearranging them to the way she liked. "Did you have a particular reason to be visiting me?" she asked, glancing up momentarily as the angel sat down on her couch.

"Humans are sometimes able to sort through their problems by talking to an outsider, are they not? I was hoping to give it a try, if only for this single occasion," Kemuel answered sincerely.

Linda looked down at her schedule for the day. It appeared that she didn't have any appointments for another hour or so. She supposed that listening to the angel would repay any favor that she owed her. So Linda picked up her pad, readjusted her glasses, and moved over to the chair closer to the couch.

"Well, start anywhere you'd like," Linda said, settling in for the session.

A wistful half-smile crossed Kemuel's face at that, and a reminiscent look took over in her eyes. "Ah, you see, it all began a rather _long_ time ago…"

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer quickly strode into Chloe's home as soon as she opened the door. "I owe you an explanation."

"Really? Why?" Chloe wondered, sarcasm touching her tone. She moved to follow him as he stopped in the midpoint between her living room and the kitchen. "Was it for leaving me all alone at the restaurant until your brother showed up to keep the busboy from giving me pitiful glances? I know what your explanation is, and I don't want to know her name, especially not today."

"Actually, Detective, that isn't what I was going to say, and did you say—?" Lucifer tried to cut in, but he was cut off instead.

"Look, Lucifer, I don't have time for this. I was just on my way out. Besides, this is my fault. I should've known how selfish and thoughtless you can be."

And before he could input anything to contradict Chloe's statement, Chloe's mother came into the room with an announcingly loud, "Lucifer!"

He let out a halfhearted chuckle, responding with the woman's own name. A slight look of confusion crossed his face as Penelope began to go on about something difficult for them… And he racked his mind about what could possibly be happening today that was so important as he covered his lack of knowing by repeating phrases of leading hints from Chloe.

 _Oh…_ It was the first day of the trial of Chloe's father's killer… Right. Bad thing to forget.

It was on the way out the door that Chloe stopped him, separating them from her mother. "Look, if you're going to just skip out on something like last night, don't send your brother."

"I didn't send anyone, not that I would send Amenadiel either way—"

"No, not Amenadiel, your other brother." Lucifer gave her a confused look. "The one with the ginger hair, green eyes?" The look turned blank. "Zadkiel?"

"Why on Earth was he there?" Lucifer scoffed.

Chloe rolled her eyes. "As far as I could tell, covering for you and being nice about it, too."

Stunned, Lucifer could only stare as Chloe walked out the door to her car.

Zadkiel? Since when did that feather duster visit Earth? Surely Kemuel didn't send him. Lucifer knew that Kemuel was acquainted with both Chloe and Trixie. Unless she was still 'grounded' in Heaven, there was no reason for her to not have gone herself… Perhaps she was in more trouble than Lucifer had realized.

But Zadkiel? Why him? Okay, so Lucifer could admit that the oldest angel right after Kemuel was a bit of a charmer himself. That still didn't explain why he went to 'cover' for Lucifer. He vaguely remembered Azrael telling (yelling at, really) him that the other angels didn't care about what he did on Earth, but clearly some did. But in a more supportive manner than what he'd assumed.

Not that Lucifer could even begin to guess why. It wasn't like _he_ was the best, archangelic, big brother ever. (No, that kind of went to Gabriel, or Raphael, or Michael…)

He knew that some of the angels had taken an interest in Chloe – that was now a given because of Kemuel _and_ Zadkiel's interactions with her. And there was definitely something _special_ about Chloe Decker that Lucifer couldn't quite put his finger on. Taking any supernatural factors out of consideration, she was… well, she was Chloe.

Lucifer frowned. There were several emotions he didn't want to confront surrounding that last thought. He knew that Dr. Martin was trying to get him to realize what it all meant or whatever, but to be perfectly honest—

The sharp _honk!_ of a car horn scattered his thoughts, making him jump a fraction of an inch. Stiffening a moment before relaxing, he snapped his gaze in the originating direction of the noise. Only to see Chloe looking at him exasperatedly as if she were waiting on him.

And then she waved her arm, beckoning him towards her and the car. "Well?" she called over to him. "Are you coming or not?"

Lucifer paused. Something warm fluttered in his chest. He liked Chloe. Like, _really liked_ Chloe. Maybe even the other four letter L-word… the important one, not the sin.

"Right! Yes, yes, of course!"

— **o~O~o** —

Chloe was beginning to feel a gnawing worrying in her stomach. Okay, maybe it had been there ever since yesterday morning, but right now it was reaching new heights. Lucifer had given an excellent statement and reenactment of his encounter with Boris and he had even said that she was truly good. She didn't want to think too much on how much that meant to her, just simply that it did.

But then Charlotte had called Lucifer back to the stand, and there was no way of him lying about her not being the first officer on the scene—

"You misunderstand," Lucifer protested. "Yes, Detective Decker was the first officer there, but she wasn't alone."

"And what does that say about the official police report? That it's wrong?" Charlotte questioned.

"Well, I haven't read it myself, but I'm telling you, you can't think the detective killed Joe Fields because there would have been a witness, who was there when Dan and I arrived."

 _Kemuel._ The name stuck out like neon wording in a dark room within the walls of Chloe's mind. She must not have stayed to have her statement taken, but that didn't explain—

"So why is this person not mentioned in the report?"

"I wouldn't know. She was leaving when I got there," Lucifer answered as best he could.

Charlotte's eyes narrowed. Chloe barely registered the defense's final words with Lucifer on the stand before he was dismissed. She glanced over to see the prosecution whispering amongst themselves and then stopping Lucifer before he could sit down. Recess was called.

"What did Stedman want?" she asked Lucifer, pulling him over to the side once they were in an area that gave them a modicum of privacy.

Lucifer's gaze flickered away momentarily before he replied with a huff. "He asked who was with you when I arrived. I couldn't exactly give him anything besides her name…"

"Kemuel," Chloe finished once he trailed off. But something wasn't right. "How did you know she was with me?"

"It's what she does, detective. I doubt there was any other reason for her to be there."

Chloe shook her head, his words not aligning with what she knew. "She said she was there to find you."

"Let me guess, I stumbled across her first, hmm? Again, it's what she does," Lucifer informed her with not a small amount of irritation.

"And that is..?"

Lucifer rolled his eyes, shifting his weight as he began to explain. "She puts herself in the path of her targets so when she confronts them, it seems like they found her and not the other way around."

"Do you know where she is?" Chloe asked suddenly. "Or at least where she might be?"

Lucifer looked hesitant before he looked away. "Supposedly she's been grounded, but Linda mentioned seeing her yesterday," he said, still looking away.

Chloe put her hand on his arm in a hopefully reassuring way. "Thanks, Lucifer. I'll find her."

"Not that I'm sure why you'd want to do that," Lucifer muttered, "but this is where we will be parting ways for the rest of the day. I have a meeting with Detective Douche about who killed dear Boris."

"You do that," Chloe called back to him as she rushed off.

She had an 'angel' to find.

— **o~O~o** —

Ishmael turned his watchful gaze away from the couple he was assigned to for the day. It had been a while since he'd heard the arrival of a fellow angel, but that distinct rustling of feathers born on divine wings was not a sound one forgot. Though, who it was that came to see him was a surprise in itself.

"Brother, I didn't know you were still on Earth," his sister called to him.

Ishmael let out a soft chuckle. "And I didn't know you still visited Earth," he replied.

A sad smile graced her lips. "You haven't been home in a while. You've missed a couple decades worth of news."

"It comes with the job," Ishmael said with a shrug. He didn't mind being away for such 'long' stretches of time. His dark brown eyes shifted off to the side, taking in the appearance of his sister's wings. "You shouldn't make the trip here and back so often, sister. You'll wear yourself out like that."

"Come _on_ , Ishmael, drop the formalities," Kemuel insisted, adding some light into her smile.

"What? And join you for a spot of nectar while we gossip about the latest divine coupling?" he teased, a grin spreading across his face as she rolled her eyes. "I'll pass, thanks."

"That's not all we do during our free time," she huffed, crossing her arms.

Oh, Ishmael was familiar with what angels in Heaven did during their 'free time'. And while, yes, it wasn't entirely gossiping, there was a fair amount of divine plotting. It was a hard thing to ignore when your main angelic talent was listening.

But that was why he liked his job on Earth. He didn't have to listen to their indirect schemes to put 'the perfect couple' together. Don't misinterpret Ishmael's opinions – his brothers and sisters weren't wrong more often than not concerning the pairings, he just didn't like hearing "oh my goodness, they're _so_ cute together" and " _ugh_ , those two are so _not right_ for each other" and "you _just_ walked past him! _No,_ turn around!"... Yeah, he could deal without hearing that every day.

Still, he did miss the singing. Just a little bit. It had been a long time since he'd heard any of his brothers and sisters' voices bring to life a melodious composition in the heavenly choir's main symphony hall (which had some of the best acoustics anywhere ever). He briefly wondered if Israfel had expanded her repertoire to include the latest human hits. Knowing her, though, she probably already learned songs that hadn't even been released yet.

Ishmael could listen to her all day long…

" _Ishmael_ , hello? Earth to Ishmael!"

The male angel swatted at the hand that waved in his face, glaring at its owner. "What?" he huffed.

"Daydreaming on the job?" Kemuel murmured in a teasing manner.

"I'm not exactly doing anything with you bothering me," he shot back. "What do you want anyway? There's no way you're only here for me."

"Fine, fine…" Kemuel relented, moving on from pleasantries. "What's the word on Mom?" she asked quietly.

Ishmael frowned, looking back towards the happy couple – one of whom was about to propose to the other (he was there to make sure nothing interrupted the two's special moment). "From what I've heard, her current priority is that case you've taken an interest in. Though, on the side she's been looking for a way home."

"Tell me something I don't know," Kemuel sighed, leaning back in her chair across from him.

There was a strange light in her eyes that Ishmael didn't like. It wasn't a defeated look, but it was the beginnings of one. Why his oldest sister would harbor such a look, he didn't know. Nor did he think he would anytime soon. At the very least, he could wipe it from her expression for now.

"Chloe Decker is looking for you," he informed her.

A blank expression of surprise crossed her face before her eyes snapped upwards toward the sun high above them. "Already? I thought I'd have another hour or so," she muttered, a finger tapping against her thigh as she contemplated something (probably the timing of her 'sudden' appearance).

"She's currently trying to see if she can locate you through following where you went after you left Dr. Martin's office, though I figure she knows by now that it's a dead end," Ishmael replied with a shrug.

His eyes narrowed as one of the couple stood up to go to the restroom. The other, staring after her partner, nervously pulled out a small, inconspicuous black box, opening it to reveal the diamond ring. Ishmael let himself smile a little. He had subtly helped her pay for the ring. (The jeweler had been selling it at a ridiculous price even for the ring's unique beauty; let's just say the buyer had gotten a very generous and miraculous discount.)

"I'd better be off then… Hey, wasn't Anael supposed to take over for you?"

Ah, there was the protective older sister he knew and appreciated (most of the time, mainly whenever she wasn't being overbearing). "I redirected her to Poyel. She's been needing a break more than I do," he said, placating any unnecessary concern.

"Does Barachiel know?" Kemuel asked, taking her brother's word for it.

Ishmael waved a dismissing hand. "He'll find out eventually. Besides, he knows I kind of like it down here."

Kemuel let out an agreeing huff. "It's looking like that's the general consensus," she muttered under her breath.

"What?"

"Nothing to worry about," she assured him before taking off, leaving him to his work.

He almost rolled his eyes. He was the angel of _listening_. Of course he'd heard what she'd said, but why on Earth would he call her out on assuming otherwise? Who knew? Certainly not him. Whatever. He wasn't salty (or whatever the human kids used for _pissed_ or _upset_ nowadays… though _irritated_ would have worked better for this situation). Nope. Not one bit.

His foul mood was quickly displaced by the other woman coming back to the table, an unknowing smile on her face as she sat down. The one with the ring took in a deep, steadying breath while brushing a stray hair out of her face, and then she got out of her seat and moved to the side of the table only to get down on one knee.

Ishmael was too far away by human standards to hear the shocked but happy gasp of the woman still sitting over the soft underlying murmurings in the restaurant, too far away to see the way her eyes brightened with absolute joy in the dim lighting. Still, he casually moved his foot slightly forward to trip the visiting/out-of-state homophobic gentleman who may or may not have been about to ruin the moment.

As a few of the waiters cleaned up the minor mess the tripping had caused, the angel waved over one of staff, putting on a genuine smile and pointing towards his charges as he spoke. "Would you send one of your best bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon over to the happy new couple? I'll be paying for it."

"Of course, sir."

— **o~O~o** —

Chloe couldn't believe her ears.

After failing to find Lucifer's mysterious sister, she had all but given up on the crumbling case against her father's murderer. Practically everything had fallen through, and with Charlotte Richards trying to make subtle accusations against her while using Lucifer to do it… Chloe didn't know how much more she could bear.

It was all so _wrong_. She couldn't do anything to make it stop without making a fool of herself, and it was just absolutely frustrating. The judge had called for a short recess after Chloe's testimony, which the prosecutor had asked to be disregarded since Chloe had apparently made it sound like she'd been alone at the scene. On her way out of the room, Chloe had seen Stedman and Judge Estrada speaking and then Estrada nodding. That nod had been the allowance to let Kemuel Waren make her statement before the court, announcing that she was in fact there with Chloe. Kemuel claimed, rightfully, that she actually found the body of Joe Fields first and that to her knowledge Chloe had done nothing but her duty in calling the case in. Kemuel even made an apology for leaving without staying to give her official statement.

There was this one moment, though, as Kemuel turned to look at the jury. Her eyes seemed to turn violet – just for the briefest of seconds, but still. Chloe shook her head, dismissing the odd image as some kind of light playing tricks with the color of Kemuel's eyes.

And now… Perry Smith was going to jail.

But for the life of her, Chloe couldn't find Kemuel anywhere ( _again_ ) after everyone was let out of the court room. Strangely, she didn't see any sign of Charlotte either. She was able to catch Lucifer though.

"Hey, can you thank your sister for me?" she asked him. "I can't seem to find her."

"Neither can I," he said with a frown, which he quickly masked with a grin. "But I will do that as soon as I'm able. I'll have to include it into the little chat she and I need to have."

Chloe nodded a few times as she took a mental note of his words. "I'll see you later then?"

"Most likely," he answered, grin only growing. And then it faltered slightly. "You meant it? All of it?"

Chloe paused. What did he— _oh_ , that… "Every word, Lucifer."

— **o~O~o** —

"Well, if it isn't my Husband's favorite _lackey_."

"As if you can say anything as His _ex_."

"Oh, please. That won't stop me from coming back."

"Even so, you're not welcome in Heaven. Not after what you did."

"What? Lucifer gets a pass, and I don't?"

"Lucifer was misguided by _you_."

"Misguided— More like shown the truth. And, you know, I'm surprised he and Amenadiel don't know yet. Then again, you have no earthly proof to give him now."

"He'll see you for what you really are soon enough."

"We will see, won't we."

* * *

 **A/N: Man, it's been… uh, like two months? Oops. Though, to be fair, I kind of lost interest in this fic until Lucifer started airing again, and then I got into that little car accident and there was a bunch of stuff going on that I'm sure you guys don't care about. But, hey, I'm still here, guys. I haven't given up on this fic yet.**

 **Oh, quick question: how interested would you people be if I made a crossover between _Supernatural_ and _Lucifer_ after I finish this fic (which I will hopefully do before the end of season three)?**

Last edited: [March 30, 2018]

* * *

 **shipwreck321:** Thank you, and I won't. I promise. And I have a few ideas for the crossover I think both sides of the fandoms _might_ like.

 **Guest:** Uh... I don't know about including everyone, but for you, I put Kemuel into Forevermore (she's getting her own little cameo - if by cameo, I meant like whole part, though she's not super involved or anything). Not too sure about any wars either, because I'm kind of bad at writing those. As for Luci being at full power. We'll get there. Just you wait.

 **LUNA:** I'm trrryyyyyiiinng. I wanna know how it ends too, but I don't. I have an idea, but not anything solid. Hint: The angels of Heaven all start to get involved. This is why this is getting hard, because I have to keep track of everyone. (I don't know why I picked a project this big. OCs are hard. Writing is hard. Ack!) I will finish this fic though. _No story left behind._


	14. Catching Up

**Chapter 11**

 **Catching Up**

"It's called a root beer float—"

"I know what it is. I'm questioning why I have to drink it."

"We're blending in. Besides, trying new things will be good for you."

"I don't need to try a _root beer float_ to blend in when the humans are _down there_ and we're _up here_."

"Come on, you'll love it."

"I don't think Hasmal agrees with you, Ezekiel… Where did you even get it?"

"Oh, hey, Muriel. I, uh, got it from Earth. Hehe."

"I figured that, but since when do you bring stuff back to share?"

"He collects human things like a dragon hoards gold."

"Hey!"

"What? It's true."

"That's not fair! Just because I like this stuff doesn't mean you get to tease me for it!"

"Now, now, that's enough you three."

"It's just a bit of fun. You didn't have to ruin it, Jegudiel."

"As if he'd ever forgo his _responsibilities_."

"Rude."

"Like you're one to talk."

"Children, behave."

"Yes, oh great Sandalphon. What be your next wish?"

"What is with you idiots today?"

"Why is everyone being so mean?"

"Ah, we don't mean anything by it, Camael…"

"I should slap all of you over the head."

"Zadkiel!"

"… When did you get here?"

"When you all started making a commotion, that's when. Sandalphon: Metatron's looking for you—"

"Of course he his."

"—Jegudiel: your shift on Earth starts tomorrow; get some rest before you go. Muriel: Leliel and Seraphiel mentioned something about a constellation being off—"

"What?! Not again!"

"—Ezekiel, Hashmal: Israfel needs you and the rest of your choir group in the auditorium."

"Ugh, now this float's gonna go to waste."

"I don't want it. Camael can have it. The fizz will make her laugh."

"I can have it? Yay!"

"Uh, yeah, sure. Later, Cammie!"

"Bye, Zeke!" the young angel called to her brothers in a cheerful farewell. As soon as they were gone, she let out a weary but relieved sigh. "Thanks for getting rid of them, Zadkiel. I thought they'd never leave."

Her older brother smiled at her with a warm chuckle. "Anytime, Cammie. What were they doing around your garden anyways?"

Camael shrugged, picking at some loose leaves that needed to be cleared away. "I did pick this spot because you can get a pretty good view of Earth from here," she offered in answer.

"Earth? Yes. Good view? Not so much," he teased, faking several attempts to 'get a better view'.

"I just wanted to see Earth without getting distracted by all of the people," she huffed defensively, though she knew his words were merely in jest. "Kemuel helped me get this spot."

Green eyes glinted with mischief. "Oh, she spoils you way too much."

"The only one who spoils me is you."

Zadkiel put a hand over where a human's heart would be as if struck by his little sister's words. "Surely you lie?" he questioned with a hurt look, all seriousness killed by his broad smile.

"As if," she retorted, rolling her eyes.

The red flowers Camael was tending to caught Zadkiel's eye. "Are these new? I don't think I've seen them here before…"

"Huh? Oh, Dad got me these before He—" Camael suddenly clapped her hands over her mouth. Almost as if she was about to let something slip she really should be keeping a secret.

Zadkiel caught on to this of course, but he plowed on with the grace of a bull in a china shop. "Were you about to allude to why Dad hasn't been around Heaven for a while?"

"Maybe," she answered in a squeak, completely avoiding her older brother's eyes.

Zadkiel pouted somewhat at her avoidance, crossing his arms in a bout of continued immaturity. And then he let it go. Making Camael uncomfortable never ended well for anyone.

"You seen Kemuel lately?" he asked, unabashedly changing the entire subject while plopping himself down next to where Camael sat in her elegant yet modest garden.

Camael shook her head. "I haven't, but Barachiel was complaining about Ishmael sending Anael to replace Poyel instead, and during that _discussion_ , Ishmael mentioned seeing Kem."

"Oh, yeah, I remember Barachiel complaining about that," Zadkiel mused, absentmindedly picking at the grass. "Any idea what she's doing on Earth this time?"

"A while back I overheard Israfel and Raziel plotting something to do with Lucifer and Ms. Decker, but there hasn't been any other mention of Kemuel or Los Angeles or Lucifer _or_ Ms. Decker. And no one's even _thought_ of Mom," Camael reported wearily.

"How you can get all of that from emotions, I will never understand," Zadkiel complimented her appraisingly. "But, still, it's a talent that suits you."

Camael beamed at the praise. "Why thank you, brother. Your flattery is appreciated, but it won't get you anywhere."

"… I don't know what you're talking about."

" _Honestly_ , Zad," Camael said sweetly. "The only other angel I spend more time with is Kemuel. I know when you're trying to get something out of me. And you're _really_ not as subtle as you think you are."

Zadkiel sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Caught red-handed then."

"Well?"

The older angel leaned over to whisper into Camael's ear. A quiet breeze rustled the plants in the small garden as Camael's light pink eyes widened and snapped to lock gazes with Zadkiel's own forest green eyes.

— **o~O~o** —

"You wouldn't," Leliel gasped, shocked by her twin's words.

Azrael stood strong against her sister's silent accusation. "The decision's already been made."

"You'd let _that demon_ parade around Hell?"

"It wasn't my call, Ellie," Azrael snapped.

The angel of night let out a scoff. "Because you _don't_ hate that guy," she replied with a raised eyebrow, not even offended by her sister's anger.

"It's not about if I hate him or not," the angel of death ground out, her foot tapping on the ground in frustration. "It was about if he could do the job or not, and the rest of the Council decided that he was qualified."

"Lucifer at least kept the place neat and clean. That guy will leave guts and body parts everywhere. Blood not even splattered in patterns," Leliel complained.

"Leliel, focus! It's bad enough as it is. Hell is barely keeping itself together. Someone has to take control, or it'll all fall into chaos. And if that happens, guess who gets to guard the gates until control is regained? Me. I refuse to stay in that place any longer than I need to. Besides, I would still have my reaper duties on top of guarding those stupid gates…"

Leliel nodded at the appropriate moments as Azrael continued to rant about Hell in general. She didn't get why they couldn't just let Alistair take over Hell. If she recalled correctly, he and Mazikeen used to get along pretty well for demons. And he was kind of OCD despite being Hell's next best torturer. At least if he was in charge there wouldn't be gross bits strewn about the place.

But, _no_. The Council wanted Asmodeus to rule. That pig was a mess. They couldn't have even picked one of their fallen brethren. Azazel would have been a far better option than any old demon. The fanatic would have kept everything going the way Lucifer had ruled Hell in any case. (Not that this really mattered all that much since the change in authority wouldn't technically happen for, like, a while... an undetermined, long while.)

"… then it would be Crowley who might be next in line. But if he has to rule Hell, Aziraphale would be upset, and— Are you even listening?"

"You were raving about who gets to rule Hell," Leliel answered without missing a beat.

It wasn't like she was new to this side of Azrael. Her twin had to release her anger somehow, and if it came out in the form of a rant, Leliel was there to listen. Sometimes it was more explosive than other times, but it was well worth not having a pissed off angel of death instead. Of course, no one could beat worst temper tantrum ever when it came to Lucifer. He was kicked out for a reason after all, and that was putting it nicely.

And everything worked out pretty well in the end, so all things considered, maybe Lucifer learned from his mistakes somewhere along the way… Nah, he was definitely still learning. What was that human saying? You learn something everyday..? Leliel felt like she was missing a word or two.

"… Kemuel goes off to play cryptic angel down on Earth, leaving the rest of us here to figure out what we're going to do if Mom does find a way to get back into Heaven. We're so screwed if that sorry excuse for a mother—"

"You might not want to finish that thought," Leliel interrupted right as Metatron and Sandalphon landed in the clearing next to them.

"Angels of death and night, respectively, how are you this fine morning?"

"Just peachy, you stuck up Scribe," Azrael muttered under her breath.

Leliel smacked her sister's arm. "Azra, just because you're in a bad mood doesn't meant you can insult our younger siblings," the angel of night reprimanded her twin.

"Everyone seems to be in foul moods as of late," Sandalphon observed. "I wonder if it's because of Father's absence."

Metatron made a quick silencing motion. "We're not supposed to talk about that," he hissed.

"Oh, please. Everyone on the Council knows He's been MIA since Camael last saw Him in the Garden," Azrael scoffed with a roll of her dark eyes. "Everyone else is too preoccupied with Lucifer and the drama he stirs up with his human to notice anything's wrong."

"Some of us like a bit of entertainment," Leliel huffed defensively.

She was, unrepentantly, the Heavenly Council's biggest supporter of the _Deckerstar_ fandom in the Silver City. (What? Someone had to give the okay to all of the large gatherings that were all because of Lucifer and Chloe Decker.) The other Council members knew about Leliel's involvement, of course. Raziel even helped Leliel out sometimes – you know, with the crowd control. Not that having too many angels over was ever a problem.

Speaking of Raziel, Leliel _knew_ she was up to something. The angel of night wasn't quite sure what it was yet, but predetermined-fate was about to be meddled with, which was something that was not easy to do unless you knew exactly how to do it right. And that was something Uriel was decently good at…

"Leliel!"

"Yes! What?"

"Could you at least pay attention when we're talking about one of the only things you like talking about nowadays?" her sister fumed.

Leliel had the decency to look sheepish. "Recap?"

Metatron rolled his eyes and began, "Remember Lucifer and Ms. Decker's lover's quarrel? Well, they've gotten over that and finally kissed— something I'm sure all of you fans fawned over. Anyways, they're caught up with some mysterious case involving the murders of college students. Of course, _we_ know that murderer is some professor named Jason Carlisle…"

"But what some of us are more concerned about is what Mother is going to tell Lucifer very soon," Sandalphon cut in before his twin could go on an extremely long tangent. "Remiel has reported that Chloe is one of Father's miracle children, which is fine by us; however, if Lucifer were to find out…"

"He would think that Dad is messing with him through destiny, and it would ruin his and Chloe's relationship," Leliel concluded with a thoughtful frown.

Sandalphon nodded. "Yes, and Raziel has brought up a proposition: send Israfel down to Earth as a distraction so that Mother doesn't have the chance to tell him and then have someone else tell him."

Leliel blinked, tilting her head to the side. "But telling him would defeat the purpose of having Israfel— oh! You mean that you'd have someone who could convince him that Chloe being a miracle child isn't a bad thing tell him."

"Exactly," Metatron confirmed with a sniff, clearly miffed at having his spotlight stolen.

"Okay, so I get that… Why send Israfel?" Leliel inquired, still somewhat confused. This was what she got for not paying attention. "I know she's a fan, like a _super fan_ , but I don't see how she'd be able to distract Lucifer. I mean, she can be pretty distracting when she's singing, but… You're going to have her go to him as a fan that wants him to 'help her with something', aren't you?" she ended flatly, giving them a blank, unamused stare.

"It's not a bad cover story," Azrael pointed out.

Leliel scowled. "That's so not fair, " she pouted. "Everyone gets to go to Earth nowadays."

"Not everyone," Sandalphon muttered.

Metatron rolled his eyes. "It's your own fault for losing that medallion, and you know it."

"I set it down for like two seconds to make sure that the triplets were all okay, and when I turned back around, it was gone!"

"You just _lost it_. Admit—"

A harmonious bell chime sounded through the Silver City, causing them all to stop and look towards the Garden. They all knew what the sound meant, and it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. After sharing a curious look with her twin, Azrael was the first to take off, followed by Leliel and then the other pair of twins.

— **o~O~o** —

"Are You sure this is a good idea?" Kemuel asked for what might have been the fifth time in the past seven minutes.

"I'd like to think this is one of my better ideas, yes."

Kemuel narrowed her eyes at her Father. He might think this was going to go well right now, but that might be different after what He had planned finally panned out. The mental institution He had admitted Himself into as God Johnson really wasn't helping to build confidence.

"You've already been in here for six months," she commented with a pointed stare. "I know for a fact that six months ago You were in Heaven, not here."

"I may have done a bit of space-time manipulation," He admitted, not looking the slightest bit like He'd done anything wrong whatsoever.

"Father."

"Kemuel."

She let out a sigh. "I suppose I should put myself on the emergency contact list in case my senile father decides to do something else terribly drastic," she mused, standing up.

"How thoughtful, but rude nonetheless," He muttered.

"I have to keep You out of trouble somehow," she said with a smile. "I'll try to be back sometime next week, okay?"

He gave her a mild glare, unamused. "I might have admitted myself to this place, but that doesn't mean I'm actually mentally unstable. Therefore you have no need to treat me as such."

"See you next week," she called back to Him as she left the room.

One of the orderlies showed her back to the front desk, and she gave the receptionist a carefully made smile. It wasn't often that she did something like this, but it was a talent of hers, another one that was attributed to her title. Though instead of the natural need for humans to trust her that the other talent caused, Kemuel was using the one that wasn't unlike Lucifer's ability to draw out a human's desires, a sort of focused push on the human's mind.

A brief – unnoticeable to any but the ones the look was directed to, really – flash of violet colored her irises as she told the receptionist, "You can trust me."

"I trust you," the receptionist responded after a moment, looking slightly dazed.

"You see, I have a bit of a problem that I know I can depend on you to take care of," Kemuel said earnestly with that careful smile still held in full force. "One of the patients here, God Johnson, he's my father, and I need you to put me on his emergency contacts list… confidentially."

It took the receptionist a moment to answer. "I can do that. Who should I put you down as, and how should I contact you?"

Kemuel gave the receptionist her name – the human one she'd made for herself, anyway – as well as the number of the cellphone she'd had Nathaniel tinker with to work wherever she went, which included both Heaven and Hell. With one last show of that smile, Kemuel walked out of the mental institution, dropping the smile as soon as she turned around. As pleasant as this place was, she didn't wish to stay any longer than she needed to, which was the main reason she'd been somewhat annoyed that He had chosen to admit Himself in order to put Himself in Lucifer's path.

Why, she didn't even want to begin to question because she knew it would just lead to more questions that would result in a headache. He sometimes did things for reasons that made no sense to her, and other times He would do things that were so understandable that it hurt. Perhaps it was a good thing that He was often somewhere in between when she usually talked with Him.

Kemuel sighed, taking off. She needed to get back to the Silver City before her siblings got mad at her again.

— **o~O~o** —

"Um, excuse me, but are you Lucifer Morningstar?" a young blonde with bright blue eyes nervously asked, stepping up to them.

Lucifer stared at her for a moment, casting a glance over at Mum and Maze for a split-second before breaking out his signature smile and answering. "Why, yes. Yes, I am."

"OMG— for real?!" the girl exclaimed, eyes lighting up with joy. "Some of my friends recorded you singing in your club, and when I saw you walk in here, I knew I had to get some kind of autograph!"

As flattering as that was, it couldn't be _all_ she wanted. "Oh, well, with an attitude like that, I'm sure I can do you one better…" he offered suggestively – not that he would do anything for her that would ruin his relationship with Chloe; he was a committed man now, after all.

The girl seemed stunned for all of three seconds, and then she snapped out of it. "Could you— Would you mind, um, singing this song that I— that I wrote..?" she stammered. "I-if it could be a private recording, I'd _really_ appreciate it."

Lucifer felt slightly taken aback. Who was he to deny such an innocent desire, especially one that he could enjoy without getting into any trouble with Chloe? "I don't see why not."

Seeing the girl's smile at his answer, he turned to bid farewell to his demon companion and his mum, tired of their confusing nonsense. He left the bar without seeing that damning photo tacked to the wall with all of the other pictures of different customers that had come in over the years. Nor did he see the not-so-innocent smile that bloomed on the girl's face as he lead her back to his bar for that private recording.

* * *

 **A/N: Just go on and say it. I suck at updating :-P**

 **But like, I'm not too sure if God Johnson really would act like that. I really need to go and rewatch that episode, but then again, at this point if He's acting differently than in the show, it's because of the AU… which means I'm definitely going to have to go back and rewatch that episode because I might have to rewrite it. [Insert long and weary sigh] Yay, I totally got this (no, I don't).**

Last edited: [March 30, 2018]

* * *

 **Guest 1:** Fan service at its finest ;-) And no, it didn't annoy me. I think the one of the only ways you could annoy me would be to start trash talking.

 **Guest 2:** You're pretty awesome yourself.


	15. Spiraling Downwards

**Chapter 12**

 **Spiraling Downwards**

 _Earlier that day (around the afternoon)…_

Heaven was its usual perpetually peaceful and calm self. The sky was a bright blue with moderate fluffy, white clouds. The golden streets were gleaming, casting yellow hues on the buildings that lined the individual streets. The plants that were plotted along the sides were particularly vibrant with color, and the grass that was always green was extra shade of healthy green.

However, the streets were quiet.

But this was for a good reason. All of the angels who weren't currently working or in a meeting were at the Choir's Auditorium, the main and biggest symphony hall in all of Heaven. Once the word had gotten out that Israfel was hosting a concert with a select group, the other angels flocked to the massive open stadium. It wasn't often that the angel of song took to the stage – especially with her smaller choir, the famed _a cappella_ one.

"I wonder what they're singing this time," whispered an excited voice.

"I don't care what they sing. Izzy's voice is bae."

The first voice let out a gasp. "Zeke's beats are to fall for."

Someone further in the back hushed them (this angel preferred Hashmal's tenor and visual effects over their favored highlights of the small choir). Nevertheless, all of the angels in the auditorium were ecstatic about this surprise performance.

The soft chatter that filled the air quickly quieted as Ramiel stepped onto the stage and began to hum. Ezekiel was heard next, a soft but steady rhythm coming from his mouth. The acoustics in the room were perfect – _of course_ making the deep, resonant, bass of the angel of thunder's humming and the almost percussive beats coming from the angel of transformation travel further and louder than it would have in even the greatest of auditoriums on Earth.

When the auditorium suddenly darkened – only the faint outlines of Ezekiel and Ramiel being the sources of light in the massive room –, a distinct buzzing and vibrating silence pushed the angels in the audience closer to the stage. A spotlight snapped on, illuminating Hashmal who now stood just to the left of center stage. As the first few lines of the song flowed from his vocal chords, a dazzling display of images depicted two star-crossed lovers.

A low murmuring shot through the audience when another spotlight showed Israfel and outlined Vasiariah joining Ramiel and Hashmal. Standing opposite of Hashmal, Israfel went straight into the female part of the duet, her words rebuffing the optimistic calling of the male lover. The two colorful images above singers danced as the two angels' voices weaved in and out of sync as their assigned lyrics deigned, the supporting hum and rhythm from the other three filling the background.

After the end of the duet, a loud cheer went up despite the open yet tragic end of the song. The next couple songs started picking up, and Vasiariah was able to show off her voice along side Israfel and Hashmal's. Even Ramiel and Hashmal got their solo moments to shine. But all too soon, the concert was wrapping up.

"Okay, guys! Just one more, and then we'll go right into requests. Encore, yeah?" Israfel called out to her enthusiastic sibling fans. (One more apparently meant a special solo piece that drawled a few sniffles from the especially emotional angels in the crowd.) Israfel and her four choir members were more than happy to sing several of the requests that were shouted out, ending with a variation of "Lean on Me" that practically everyone in the auditorium joined in on singing.

"Ain't that a real kicker," someone muttered, sounding faintly surprised at the massive collection of singing voices.

It was mostly directed to himself, but that didn't keep another from overhearing, turning and giving the other angel a questioning look. "Never heard this one? She always sings this one. It's like… _our_ song."

The first angel cracked a smile. "I'm never really around, but I do love this whole set up. You kids are doin' great," he told the angel with an honest grin.

The angel's jaw dropped as soon as she realized whom she was talking to. "G—" she started before getting cut off.

"Ah-ah-ah, you're not busting my cover, missy. Later!" he exclaimed and then abruptly took off with a quick flick of his golden wings.

Fortunately (unfortunately for some), Zadkiel had taken notice of the exchange, and he rushed over to his shell-shocked little sister, waving off any concerned onlookers. He escorted Illyasviel out of the seated sections and away from prying eyes. Leliel joined them a minute later.

"It's okay, Illya," Zadkiel was telling the young angel. "You don't have to tell us whoever he was. It doesn't matter as long as you're fine."

But she was shaking her head. The angel with the golden wings was important, _so important_. She _had_ to tell them. But she just _couldn't_. "I—"

Leliel cut in before the angel could stress herself out any further, taking shaking hands into her steady ones. "Shhh… Take a deep breath. There you go," she said, soothing her frazzled sister. "Now, what was that all about?"

"She was talking to someone who flew off before I could recognize him," Zadkiel informed her.

Leliel glanced at him before returning her attention back to Illyasviel. "Did he hurt you?" she asked seriously.

Ever since… well, _Mom_ , the Council's number one priority in any emergency was their younger siblings' safety and health. What happened to Camael would never happen again. They would die first.

Illyasviel shook her head adamantly. "N-no… but he slipped this into my hands right before he left."

Zadkiel took the sealed scroll that was being handed to him. No one used scrolls anymore. It was by regular paper mail or the now-trending texting by phone. Personally, he preferred paper, but the texting was technically faster – if one wasn't including just flying to go talk in person (that technically trumped the other methods). But it would seem that this other angel was being anonymous. Not particularly odd, _per se_ , but still out of the ordinary these days.

Leliel took the time to dismiss Illya at that point, sending her to Tzaphkiel. He would know how to help her, and if she needed a bit more assistance, then he would take her to the Healing Halls to see Raphael or another of their medically-oriented siblings. Keeping an eye on the young angel as she shuffled back to a quieter area of the auditorium where Tzaphkiel would meet her, Leliel looked back to her older brother, who was blankly staring down at the scroll.

Suddenly, Zadkiel frowned, reading aloud the tag attached to the end of the scroll. " _'To whomever the hell is currently in charge of the Silver City'_ … Okay, what?"

Leliel rolled her eyes, snatching the scroll. "Obviously this is meant for Kemuel, since no one else happens to be around these days."

"It's not like she's here either," the male angel muttered somewhat bitterly.

"Then _you_ read it."

Zadkiel gave her an affronted look. "Why?"

"You just said that Kem's not here. Therefore, being the oldest, you should read it," the angel of night clarified, justifying her opinion rather flawlessly. "Duh."

Zadkiel bit his bottom lip in a rare show of a nervous habit. "Maybe I should wait…" he mumbled indecisively.

"But what if it's important," Leliel insisted.

"And if it's not," Zadkiel shot back.

Leliel waved the tag in his face. "It's addressed to who's in charge. That would be you right now. _Read it_."

"Bully," he muttered, already in the process of breaking the seal and rolling the scroll open. After a moment of reviewing the letter, his earlier frown returned in full force. "It says the original pieces are moving… and that the favorite trifecta will come together before falling apart… for good this time."

"That sounds even more cryptic than what Kem says about the things Dad tells her," Leliel commented, shifting to look over Zadkiel's shoulder. "Azra's waving us down. I think she wants us to be with her when she gives Israfel the talk."

Zadkiel snorted. "Don't say it like that. And Israfel already knows what it's like to go down to Earth. She goes every other month for the songs."

"I know, but this is different. She'll be interacting with our dear, oldest fallen brother. That deserves a whole talk in and of itself," Leliel pointed out, using her hands to wave back a response to her twin.

Not really understanding the complex message that passed between the twins, Zadkiel shrugged. "I think Israfel will be fine. At the very most, she'll fangirl really hard, which might actually help her cover—"

"She has a cover? I thought she was just going to straight up distract Lucifer for like an hour so you could gently deliver the good news."

Zadkiel sent a glare her way. "I'm not Gabriel, and he didn't deliver so much as smacked that poor girl in the face with the fact that Dad had her knocked up." He rolled his eyes. "If anything, I might be able to do my part without getting Los Angeles destroyed in one of Luci's infamous bouts of rage."

"Look on the bright side, if it all epically fails, it literally can't be worse than what would have happened. Like, even Kem was surprised that we were on board to let her go back to make sure that Chloe would be okay," Leliel assured him, even though it only partially worked. "It's all part of the master plan."

"Yes, this great and ultimate plan that will solve everything," he drawled.

Leliel gave him a slight shove, which did nothing but push her the opposite direction. "You're just annoyed that Kemuel just got back only to have to go to Earth _yet again_." When only silence met her in response, she rolled her eyes. "Come on, it was her or Cassie, and if something happens, then she's far more suited to deal with it than he is."

Zadkiel let out a long sigh, starting on the trek to join Azrael and Israfel. "I know that… I just don't like it."

"Most of us don't," Leliel agreed.

— **o~O~o** —

"And you're sure he'll take the bait? This song you've picked won't cause any suspicions?"

"Yeah, yeah— I got it."

The Plan was actually quite simple: Israfel would provide a distraction to get Lucifer away from Mom and Mazikeen – preferably, she would get him to the relative safety of Lux –, and once she was gone (away, safely back in the Silver City) Zadkiel would make his entrance, making sure that Lucifer understood Chloe was still Chloe even if their Father had put them in each others' paths. All the while, Kemuel would be in charge of keeping Chloe calm and escorting her to the hospital.

The aftermath would be closely monitored by the Seers. It was Remiel who was the most concerned about the possible (bad) consequences. They were all affecting the definite future, and it didn't help that they were flirting with the line of interference clauses. Because what they really needed right now was a major slap on the wrist for breaking the rules.

Of course, as the universe ( _fate_ ) hates pretty much everyone in existence, something was bound to go wrong. However, what went wrong wasn't what most were expecting to go wrong. In fact, it actually worked out in their favor. Not that they knew this at the time.

Israfel had successfully gotten Lucifer to take her to Lux – stroking his ego just the right way could get you a lot of things apparently. Plus she'd unwittingly gotten on his good side with her perfectly timed entrance, and her being a fan wasn't making her lose any brownie points.

To be fair, it hadn't been her fault. She had played the role rather well, not even having to pretend all that much. It was when she accidentally let a mention of her choir slip out that things started to go sideways. Neither Israfel nor Lucifer thought about the minor mistake when it was said, but a thought was planted in the back of Lucifer's mind.

And it _itched_ whenever there was there barest hint that Israfel wasn't human. Like when she referred to more of her 'friends' with an intimacy that implied closer relations – more familial than romantic. Or how she shied around where she lived or how she would be getting home. Or simply the club lights giving her eyes an ethereal glow whenever they hit at just the right angle.

It was kind of sad that Lucifer didn't figure it out a bit faster, but it wasn't like he was actively looking for all the right signs. His attention was far more focused on making this girl's day – _night_ , whatever. He found her rather likeable, especially since she had a passion for song and good music. The song she'd written wasn't half bad either. It reminded him a bit of himself and Chloe (and in a good way too), which was a bit coincidental, but nevertheless he took it all in full stride.

He couldn't, however, ignore the creeping sensation that something wasn't what it seemed. At first he'd simply pinned the feeling to the fact that his mother and Maze were conspiring together, but when it was still there while he was singing for Izzy ( _that was the name the girl had given him_ ), he sought out what was making his hair stand on end – not necessarily in the scared sense, but more like _wary_.

Lucifer wasn't quite sure what gave it away, nor was he sure about when exactly he finally placed what 'Izzy' was. He just knew that one moment he was perfectly fine with the _young woman's_ presence, standing beside him as he played at the piano on the main floor, and the next she was giving him this smile, and he knew— _he knew_ that she was an angel.

"Is something wrong?"

Oh, everything was wrong about the way her head was tilted even if she was looking at him with a concerned expression. That was a very angel-typical head tilt. Even he did it sometimes when he wasn't really thinking about it. (He didn't do the thoughtful/stunned/confused blinking thing, though. Not near as much as the angels did.)

Lucifer let the chord finish its resonate hum that filled the air. His fingers rested on the piano keys even as he closed his eyes, letting out a sigh. "Why the bloody hell are you here?"

She actually looked somewhat offended. "What? I can't get the best singer originally from Heaven to approve of a song that's not supposed to come out for like two years?" she asked, dropping the charade.

"It's not that I don't approve," Lucifer started before he paused, taking a moment to focus and keep himself from getting distracted. "Are they letting all of you cloud hoppers down here now?"

"Yes and no," the angel answered unhelpfully.

Lucifer was about five seconds away from throttling her (even if he would feel a bit bad afterwards – he did kind of like her after all) when yet another angel appeared dramatically in the darkened space atop the main stairs. What was it with all of the angels showing up? As much as Lucifer was all for living in _the city of angels_ , that did not mean that everyone else could just take over. He was supposed to be on permanent vacation!

"Go on home, Israfel," the older angel softly commanded his sibling.

She – _Israfel_ glanced over at Lucifer before nodding, spreading her wings and leaving. Which left Lucifer and his new guest alone to themselves. And even though Lucifer couldn't quite make out the other angel's features, he was willing to bet that the other was a ginger and had green eyes – a meddlesome angel who was known for colluding with a certain violet eyed sister of theirs. In other words, _Zadkiel_.

"Not even a hello, big brother?" came the droll greeting.

"Not for devious leprechauns like yourself," Lucifer snapped, standing up.

That earned him a raised eyebrow. " _Wow_ , real mature. Also inaccurate since I only _look_ Irish in this form, and I'm pretty sure that you're the more devious out of the two of us," the angel pointed out.

"Me? Devious?" Lucifer gasped in mock horror. "What could you possibly mean?"

A scoff and roll of green eyes. "As in you really have no reason to not listen to me."

"I don't have to listen to you on the basis that you're a _meddling prat_."

"And if it's the kind of meddling that benefits you? Still willing to ignore me then?" Zadkiel inquired smugly.

Lucifer grit his teeth. Angels didn't come down to Earth for no reason. Israfel and Zadkiel had made this trip on purpose. There was something they were meant to do, and it had something to do with him. "What do you want?"

"There's something you have a right to know. Some of us argued that you'd react poorly and so we shouldn't tell you. I think you can guess how the vote went…"

Moving over to his bar, Lucifer motioned for the angel to continue.

Zadkiel took a deep breath. "Your dearest mother and you demon companion as well as the great majority of the Host decided that you should know… Chloe Decker is a miracle child. Father put her here on Earth."

If the tumbler that Lucifer filled with some liquor he picked at random hadn't been on the bar countertop, it would have broken when it hit the floor. It still shattered in his hand. Lucifer took some satisfaction in how Zadkiel barely hid a flinch at his red eyes.

— **o~O~o** —

"Chloe?"

Chloe knew that voice. _That of an angel_ a supposed angel. Part of Chloe ( _the part that still wanted to believe_ ) hoped that maybe Kemuel really was an angel (but then that would have made Lucifer the Devil, and that couldn't have been right). Still, if Chloe couldn't get the blood to stop pouring from her nose… maybe she would need a miracle.

"There you are. You had me worried."

Chloe was trying very hard not to question _why_ or _how_ Kemuel was in her house. _It won't stop it won't stop it won't stop_ was overriding everything else for the most part. A rare type of panic welled in the pit of her stomach. Her nose was bleeding, and that could only mean—

"Here, tip your head back. No need to make this any messier than it already is."

Just like that, Chloe was reminded that Kemuel was related to Lucifer. They were so different, but it was the little things. There was this humor they shared – not the sexual innuendos that seemed to make up Lucifer's whole world, but the way they could make light of any situation. Kemuel was simply far more subtle about it than Lucifer usually was. Certain, vague mannerisms were there, too – the way they would look at you as if peering into your soul or the way they seemed impossibly older than they were. Their speech, the way they talked: always alluding (not so much alluding as just outright proclaiming in Lucifer's case) to something _bigger_.

That and their eyes.

"You're going to be just fine, Chloe. Trust me on that."

… And Chloe did. She did trust Kemuel, but not in the way the 'angel' was asking. Chloe trusted Kemuel _with_ other things. She didn't necessarily trust _in_ Kemuel. That was something Chloe couldn't do, no matter how much _something_ was willing her to. _Something_ that whispered sweet nothings into her mind's ear. _Something_ that was luring her closer and closer to the edge of oblivion.

"Healing was never one of my strong suits, and I'm afraid to say I've never done this on non-relatives before. _Relax_ , Chloe. This kind of strain isn't good for humans."

A brief though crossed Chloe's mind right before she fell over the edge. _What would Lucifer think about this?_

 _"He loves you, even if he doesn't quite realize it what that means yet. That is all you need to know."_

* * *

 **A/N: I couldn't help it. I had to put in a Gabriel cameo. I mean, come on, he's my favorite archangel in** ** _Supernatural_** **hands down.** **Btw, being sick sucks; however, it also means that I feel too tired to do anything else, which in turn means that you awesome people get an update. Congratulations. (Also, Happy early Easter if that relates to you, since Easter Sunday is, well, this Sunday... which also happens to be April Fools.)**

Posted: [March 30, 2018] Don't forget that I've basically gone through and re-edited everything up to this point. Review replies are now being posted at the bottom of the chapter the review is made to.

* * *

 **Guest 1:** While I'm sorely tempted to have them all come together at some point, I also said at the beginning that Michael, Raphael and Gabriel were only supposed to be mentioned (even if Gabriel managed to sneak in here), so... unfortunately, no.

 **Flash:** For this fic, I'll say that Michael and Lucifer are equals in terms of power; however, Michael is technically more skilled/experienced at fighting than Luci is.  
As for the Supernatural stuff... it gives me some basis of a hierarchy to work with along with some blocked out family dynamics - namely the separation between the archangels (plus Amenadiel) and the regular angels. Those dynamics include the discrimination the Mother has towards the regular angels. If you have a problem with how some of my _Supernatural_ headanons are influencing this fic, I mentioned the influence at the bottom of the prologue; you're bringing this up a bit late.

 **Guest 2:** Thanks, you'll be getting that chapter soon enough


	16. Edging Sideways

**Chapter 13**

 **Edging Sideways**

Had Kemuel ever mentioned that she had a rather strong disliking for hospitals?

It wasn't that she found anything essentially wrong with them… She just had a passionate dislike for the turmoil that built in festering buds within these sorts of places. Sure, she could concede that good things did happen in places of healing, but hospitals had a way of making even the smallest hope seem _sterile_. Maybe it was the white-washed walls or the obnoxiously clean state of everything or the ever-present and lurking sense of death.

So, no. Kemuel did not like hospitals.

That didn't mean she couldn't tolerate them. They had their usefulness. The Healing Halls were in Heaven for a reason. Raphael had already huffed and tutted at her enough about her lack of appreciation for the medical arts. Not that she didn't appreciate a good healing. She just didn't like the idea of needing a healing in the first place.

But she had learned. With the angels' childhood, it had been imperative. Mother – once She realized God wasn't paying close attention to His angels – had become less subtle about Her actions as time passed. Kemuel had been left to pick up the pieces.

" _Humans_... Their bodies are so fragile," Chloe's assigned 'doctor' muttered.

Kemuel glanced over to her brother. Talented as Emmanuel was with the gift of healing (on par with Raphael even), his disdain for the _fragility_ of the human body left some tact to be desired. Still, he was the best of the angelic healers who were willing to go to Earth as a representative of Raphael's patronage. That being said, it was well worth it to simply put up with his grating personality, which he could have only gotten from Raphael himself.

A nurse came in, carrying a rather large metal binder. "Dr. Matthews, your conference with the board is in ten minutes," she informed him.

Kemuel could tell he was stifling a sigh, causing her to hold back a smile. It was his own fault for building a reputation as a respective (if bristly) doctor here on Earth. Being the go-to healer concerning human matters meant that the identity he'd made for himself had been carefully crafted so he could continue his work throughout the centuries without revealing his divinity.

"First I get called down to help with an extreme overflow of trauma patients in Europe, and then the Council wanted to me magic a brain tumor out of a certain someone's head, and _now_ you've had me dragged from New York to LA by _airplane_ for the sake of Lucifer's crush—"

"You love doing house calls," she pointed out, cutting into his rant. "Besides, it'll be better for everyone if you're stationed here for the time being."

Emmanuel glared at her and then checked his watch. "I should be back in an hour or so. If Ms. Decker happens to wake before then, make sure she stays put."

Kemuel barely gave the other angel a glance at his dramatic exit, his white coat swishing behind him. Emmanuel was far less dramatic than _some_ of Kemuel's other siblings, so any exaggeration was more like inside joke than true mockery. She settled herself down in the side chair next to the bed. She figured that it would be less intimidating for her to be sitting rather than standing when Chloe did wake.

That thought lead Kemuel to wonder how Zadkiel was doing. Obviously something happened because Lucifer wasn't busting in through the door and making a scene of everything. Whether that something was good or bad remained to be seen. Personally, Kemuel was getting on something in between.

Zadkiel wasn't stupid, and he knew how to take care of himself ( _if he couldn't take care of himself, how could he possibly able to take care of his siblings?_ ). Lucifer was probably just throwing another fit, and Zadkiel was stuck, trying to keep him relatively calm. She could honestly imagine the exact expression her younger brother would give her upon their return to Heaven.

And that was one of the requests following the agreement of Kemuel's involvement in this plan of theirs: Kemuel had to stop just flying off. At the very least, she should tell Camael if she was going to Earth for a bit. Kemuel had... somewhat reluctantly agreed. The reluctance had mainly come from the resulting lack of free reign, but it was an understandable compromise amongst them.

At least she wasn't grounded anymore.

The rustle of feathers announced the incoming presence of another angel – though it was neither Zadkiel nor the impromptu return of Emmanuel –, and Kemuel was reminded that while she wasn't going to be kept in the Silver City, she _was_ being watched. Still, Azrael was entirely tolerable for a supposed babysitter (that term was, of course, due to a certain amount of petulance from Kemuel at even needing to have said 'babysitter').

"You know, I went and checked Ms. Decker's records," Azrael began, leaning against the doorway. "Ignoring the fact that she really shouldn't even exist, she was supposed to die a couple years ago."

Kemuel didn't even bat an eye at the 'news'. She knew about that particular incident. Some of the more dedicated _fans_ of Deckerstar (or whatever her siblings were calling it) had been rather informative and forthcoming with all the instances in which Lucifer had saved Chloe (among other things, of course). At any rate, she knew that Chloe was rather special for a human – for the obvious reasons.

The angel still wasn't quite sure what Lucifer saw in the detective that made him willingly make a deal with their Father to save Chloe and then push her away in passing whims. At the very least, it was Lucifer's interest in the human that drew the other angels toward her. And in no small way was that the sole reason the angels had become invested in all of _this_ … whatever it was.

To think it all started when Kemuel went down to go save Uriel from getting himself killed – no, wait, it had started when Camael began gossiping about Lucifer and his human, when Lucifer got himself killed and made a deal with their Father.

(Maybe it had truly started closer to the Beginning, but that was not something to ponder while amongst humans.)

Kemuel needed Lucifer to be okay – better than okay. She needed him to pull himself together and do what needed to be done. It was the only way any of them were going to come out of this relatively unscathed. At least, that would be true physically. Emotionally, mentally, spiritually… that was another matter entirely.

"You should know by now that Chloe is not a normal case," Kemuel pointed out in a low murmur.

The angel of authenticity didn't miss the way the angel of death sent a glare her way, nor did she miss the way her sister also glanced out into the hallway (more than likely making sure that a human didn't overhear their conversation and happen upon divinity prematurely – something that could be easily dealt with but even easier handled if it didn't happen at all). However, instead of coming back with a snappish retort like Kemuel expected, Azrael sighed and walked over to the window to peer out across the hospital's entrance courtyard.

Kemuel had looked out the window early on before eventually settling down in the chair she had more or less claimed for her stay. Of course, then it had been night. The outside probably looked different in the day. It usually did.

"Uriel says that Lucifer will come to see her not long after she wakes. A simple enough prediction or something."

An acknowledging hum was Kemuel's only response to her sister.

 _That's good_ , she thought. It meant Zadkiel had done his part well enough – enough to have Lucifer see some sense… the kind that would keep him from doing something overly stupid or drastic like he tended to do.

Hopefully.

Which was what they were left with at the end of the day: hope.

It was rather difficult to have faith nowadays, even if what one believed in was undoubted. After all, how was one supposed to… _no_.

No, Kemuel would not let herself have such traitorous thoughts now of all times.

She closed her eyes. "Then we should leave before he gets here."

"Should," Azrael repeated with a scoff. "Like _you're_ going to. Besides, I doubt you'd let Emmanuel to fend for himself against Lucifer. Despite that bristly exterior of his, the good doctor is actually quite sensitive."

"I know."

The angel of death huffed. "I don't get why you keep insisting on involving yourself like this. You're not the only one who can see this through."

"I know."

"I seriously doubt that," Azrael bit out.

"Do you now?" Kemuel opened her eyes, giving the younger angel a look. "And why is that?"

Her question was only partially rhetorical. She really did want to know why Azrael thought otherwise. Kemuel told herself that she might be swayed by the answer.

The angel of death stared at her for all of two whole minutes before slowly starting. "You… You're too much like them, like _him_. So hardheaded and stubborn when you don't need to be because that's how you've always been, _how you have to be_. You get this idea in your head, and you don't realize how wrong you are until something bad happens…

"Just, slow down and think about what you're doing once in a while. Sometimes it's better to react to something in that moment rather than go through the motions of what you planned years ago," she finished in a solemn voice.

Kemuel met her sister's gaze and held it for what felt like an age. The only thing that broke their silence was the background noise of the hospital. Some of the noises were ignorable; others not so much. Like the machine that _bleeped_ along with the human's heartbeat.

The older angel tore her eyes away first, looking back to her charge (for now anyway). "If it makes you and the others feel any better, I don't plan on coming back here when all is said and done."

"That's what you said last time."

She let out a weary sigh as that familiar rustle of feathers met her ears at her sister's departure. Given time, perhaps Azrael would realize that Kemuel had, in fact, kept her word last time. Last time: that had been in Hell, the outskirts of the realm at any rate. It was the one time Kemuel had looked back, and afterwards she had never turned her gaze there again.

Afterwards she had only dared to let her sight wander to Earth. Only ever Earth. Because looking anywhere near Hell was so, so tempting. ( _Because Hell meant Lucifer._ ) But now Lucifer was on Earth.

Kemuel had many problems, but Earth itself was most certainly not one of them. It was some of the _things_ on it that were proverbial thorns in her side – some larger and nastier than others. Some, like a certain Goddess of All Creation. Now that Kemuel had shown her hand, She would make a move of Her own. Sooner rather later, unfortunately. And it would all lead back to Her defiling their home.

By all the powers that be, on Earth and in Heaven, Kemuel would not let history repeat itself – in any variation thereof, not to any of her siblings nor to her Father.

— **o~O~o** —

Lucifer put one foot in front of the other.

He was about as "calmed down" as he could be, considering the metaphorical bomb that had been dropped on him. Still, he supposed that it could have been worse – things could have gone worse. If Zadkiel hadn't been there to act as a mitigator, who knows how badly Lucifer would have lashed out.

Of course, Lucifer was not so grateful for the other angel's presence when the twerp refused to let him go see Chloe once Zadkiel politely informed Lucifer about her other condition – the life-threatening one. The following explanation about Kemuel's involvement in all of this and the adamant assurances that Chloe would be fine were the only things that kept Lucifer from plowing right through Zadkiel.

And perhaps it was for the best, Lucifer had to concede. Being… not _forced_ so much as _placated_ into staying in his penthouse had given Lucifer plenty of time (a full day, no less) to think about things.

Which really wasn't all that scary until one accounted for what was being thought about.

Zadkiel wasn't exactly the greatest help when it came to talking about aforementioned _things_ – that was what Linda was for. Still, Zadkiel wasn't completely useless. The younger angel proved to be entertaining enough even when he wasn't being a cheeky bastard.

Anyways, by the time Lucifer had wrapped his head around the situation as best he could without resorting to any sort of catastrophic violence, he made it very clear to Zadkiel that he was ready to see Chloe. The questioning eyebrow that had been raised in response hadn't improved Zadkiel's standing in the slightest. Then again, as Lucifer contemplated life (in general) once more, he determined that Zadkiel was stalling in an effort to give Chloe more time to rest.

Though why he was doing that, Lucifer wasn't all to sure of. But he supposed that if Zadkiel was doing this for Kemuel, then it made a bit of sense. However, Zadkiel had mentioned that this whole ordeal was a decision made by the majority of the angels in Heaven – who apparently supported Lucifer being on Earth _with Chloe_ … So maybe Zadkiel was doing this for everyone's sake?

That line of thought lead Lucifer to wonder just how involved Heaven was with his life on Earth. Surely his pesky younger siblings had only taken a mild interest… right? _Wrong_. Lucifer was certain that if he went looking, he'd find that the number of 'miracles' in the surrounding LA area had skyrocketed since Kemuel started paying him visits.

And wherever Kemuel went, the others followed.

(Of course, it usually it took a decade or two for the younger angels to catch on to whatever Kemuel was doing – right now being an exception of course –, but Kemuel almost always started a trend amongst the angels in the Silver City. If anything was suddenly in fashion, ninety-five percent of the time it was because of something Kemuel had done or was wearing. Because angels didn't wear the same _exact_ thing throughout their _entire_ lives. That was such a ridiculous notion.)

In other words, perhaps it wouldn't hurt for Lucifer accept that Heaven was far more involved than he'd like and take a little (maybe more than just a little) advantage of that small fact.

So when Lucifer stopped just outside of the closed door to the room he'd been told was Chloe's, he took a steeling breath and prepared for the eventuality that his detective might not be as alone as she would have been if fate hadn't taken this path. This was confirmed the moment the door swung open to reveal a person who could have only been Chloe's doctor. And also an angel if the light green flashing in his dark brown eyes gave any indication.

"Lucifer," the angel – Dr. Matthews? – greeted tersely. "She's been expecting you."

Ah, the pronoun game. The other angel could, most likely, mean Chloe, but at the same time he could also be referring to a certain older female angel. Lucifer took a step forward, only to be barred from entering the room as 'Dr. Matthews' stayed firmly where he was in the doorway. A frown formed on Lucifer's face.

But before he could _move_ the angel out of the way, a voice called from across the room: "Lucifer? Is that you?"

 _Chloe_. She sounded okay, if only a bit weak – tired, really. But she was okay. She had to be.

The angel in front of Lucifer tore him from his thoughts just enough to hear the angel let out an irritated huff and then watch him turn back to his patient. "Ms. Decker, it seems you have another visitor. Please refrain from straining yourself. I'd rather not have to keep you for an extra night simply because of a _persistent_ but mild fever."

Somehow the angel-doctor managed to direct that last sentence at Lucifer despite having addressed Chloe and not even looking in Lucifer's general direction. Lucifer might have been legitimately offended if the good doctor hadn't finally moved out of the way right then. That and Lucifer was quickly distracted by the low murmur that followed the angel's swift departure and the chuckle that came as the amused response.

Right, right. Kemuel was here too. Lucifer had already suspected that, so why was he panicking about it _now_?

Kemuel excusing herself from the room in order to give Lucifer and Chloe some time alone was a testament to how much the world was invested in Lucifer's current well-being. That being said, he wasn't quite off the hook just yet – the look his younger sister gave him told him as much. They still needed to have that conversation which was long overdue.

"I'll be here when you're ready," she whispered to him, slipping a piece of paper into his pocket as she left.

 _"Don't mess this up, Luci."_ Zadkiel's last words to him rang clearly in his head once Kemuel had disappeared after turning past a corner in the hospital's hallway.

Finally entering the room, Lucifer pulled the closest chair up to Chloe's bedside before sitting down. The smile she was giving him was far warmer than the sunlight that streamed in through the window. Even with the dark circles under her eyes, Chloe looked much better than what Lucifer had imagined.

Zadkiel hadn't held back any details when it came to what Kemuel had done to save Chloe's life. Angelic healing was good and all, but it could be… dangerous. Kemuel had literally _burned_ the poison from Chloe's system. Perhaps it should have been considered a miracle that Chloe had only been left with a 'mild fever' afterwards.

(But that was why that other angel – Emmanuel, it had to have been; he was the only healer in Heaven with enough of a spine to come to Earth – was there. To make sure that Chloe would, in fact, come out of this perfectly healthy.)

"Lucifer, you okay?"

Several answers came to mind, but none of them seemed right to say. An "of course, Detective," just sounded too simple and distanced. Any lengthy response would end up too complicated. He doubted she would appreciate a deflection. Silence wasn't an option.

Chloe waited patiently as Lucifer finally settled on something. "I've been better," he admitted, taking her hand when a frown threatened to mar her expression. "But as long as you're okay, I'll be okay too."

That smile came back, and somehow the room was even brighter with it.

* * *

 **A/N: How was the romance level? Hopefully it was fine... not that there was much of it anyway. This story is going really AU now, isn't it? XD**

 **Also, I'm pretty sure that at this point, if this were on Ao3, the pairing tags would go like so: Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, past Kemuel (OC)/Lucifer Morningstar, ****(maybe/implied – it was entirely platonic), Kemuel (OC) & Lucifer Morningstar, Kemuel (OC) & Chloe Decker**

 **Maybe that helps explain the relationships a bit?**

Post Date: [April 22, 2018] Happy Earth Day

* * *

 **Guest 1:** True, it would be epic, and it would cause some tension... But Luci regaining his wings anytime soon isn't very likely at the moment.

 **Guest 2:** No, no, you're not being pushy. (I'll let you know if that happens.) And don't worry about Candy; I've already written out like a 100 word scene that takes care of her and her money problems. As for our dear Luci... We'll see. I haven't written anything major for the next chapter yet, so these reviews are actually pretty influential to possible plot. Though, you have given me the evil thought to make you folks wait 6 or 7 chapters for him to regain all of his strength and powers. (No, I'm kidding. I won't do that – maybe. There's more than likely going to be some talking going on next chapter, and then I want to move on to the God Johnson arc.)


	17. Ludicrum Tres

**Interlude 3**

 **Ludicrum Tres**

By the time it all came to one great front, it had been too late to change the most important things. They should have seen the cracks far sooner than it took for them to realize that what She was doing was _wrong_. They had been too trusting – fearing Her, believing that He might notice, praying that one day it would stop.

And, to be fair, it did stop. Though it was only because She had gone too far in Her torments.

An angels wings were… symbolic, in a way. Their wings were defining, a part of what made an angel an angel, so deeply and intricately connected to their being that to lose one's wings left behind scars (both external and internal ones). To that end, was it so surprising that in Her hatred of Her not-children She would find release in breaking them?

Feathers – all the different shades of pink – were scattered in clumps, stuck together by the cooling red blood, strewn about the ground around their owner, who was thankfully unconscious and free from the pain having her wings shredded would cause. The sight was still far more than enough to make Kemuel sick to her stomach. It had been too much like walking in to the scene Abel's bloody murder.

This— Such carnage didn't belong in Heaven. It just… How could She? How _dare_ She? Emotions raced through Kemuel mind and body, rolling and crashing into each other like ocean waves amidst a thunderstorm.

It took Kemuel less than a second to locate her Father and then less than a minute to reach Him. "Father! Father— please, You have to help! It— It's Camael… She's…"

 **"Kemuel, my daughter, slow down,"** He told His desperate and hysterical daughter. **"What's wrong?"**

"Cammie— her wings—"

God didn't waste a millisecond more, moving them both across time and space to be next to Camael's prone form. Kemuel didn't ever expect nor want to see the grief that passed across His face upon seeing the state of Camael's wings. Not again. Not after Samael's fall from grace.

 **"Oh, my dear little one, what happened to you?"** He whispered forlornly, picking Camael up into His arms and holding her close.

Kemuel kept silent as she reverently watched His work – His hands gentle against the delicate, broken wings. When it was done, she stayed by her little sister's side, not daring to move from the spot until Camael awoke. Their Father stayed as well, both waiting well into the next dawn.

It was then that the angel decided that she'd had enough of seeing her siblings' suffering.

* * *

 **A/N:** **I never did say I was updating with a full chapter, did I? Though, to be fair, I originally planned to have another chapter ready, but then I hit a road block… so you'll just have to hold on with this for a little while. (And I know my Latin is probably wrong, but that's what popped up in Google Translate.)**

* * *

 **Guest:** It's okay that you're confused; it's just an interlude, all of which take place in the past. I've kind of already alluded to something being wrong with Camael's wings. I didn't want to get very graphic in this scene here, but essentially, Mum almost ripped out Camael's wings. God healed them, but they're still damaged, and that kind of trauma left a mark (hence the references to how Cammie's wings didn't always have red specks on them). Of course, this is a turning point for Kemuel, who does want to see her siblings get hurt anymore.


	18. Pushing Past

**Chapter 14**

 **Pushing Past**

Lucifer fidgeted with the pen that he'd grabbed from the coffee table. This was perhaps the first time that he'd sat down on Linda's couch and not spoken a word yet, but his therapist was still able to gleam that he would find the words he wanted to say by the end of the session. Dr. Martin (because she was in therapist mode… still, she was Linda) sat patiently waiting in her own chair – legs crossed, clipboard open and ready, pen resting in her relaxed hand.

Even so, Lucifer could tell that his silence was unnerving her. Brooding didn't suit him – anyone and everyone could agree on that. It didn't mean that it didn't happen sometimes. Eventually everyone pulled into themselves to _think_.

"I'm not ready," he stated suddenly, and as soon as he started, he found he couldn't stop. "I thought I was— I'd been waiting for a chance to talk to _her_ for weeks. And then the detective— Chloe and I became a thing, and I realized that _I am not ready_."

Linda tapped the end of her capped pen once, twice, three times on the paper of her clipboard. "Not ready for what, Lucifer?"

Lucifer's grip on the pen he rolled between his fingers tightened, threatening to snap the thing in two. His eyes looked everywhere but at Linda, who was obviously worried for him. He found it endearing – he really did. It was nice to have someone (a very _human_ someone nonetheless) just sit there and be normal and not treat him like he didn't understand how anything worked, which for some reason meant that they had to intervene before something epically bad inevitably happened.

 _Just— why did—_

Lucifer dropped his head into his hands, pulling at his hair and disheveling it more than it already was. It was all just so jumbled – thoughts and feelings swirling tumultuously round and round and round. It was disorienting, and it hurt.

He barely registered Linda getting up, setting her clipboard and pen aside, and sitting down next to him. She didn't touch him, but the closer proximity of her presence was just enough to ground him. He made his fingers released their hair-pulling grip.

"I… I _like_ the detective. I like her a lot, and I want what we have to work. I want it to be real, but—" _Chloe was put on Earth for a reason; she was put in his path by God. How could any of it have been real? How could it_ be _real?_ ". . . There are… reasons that I can't believe in that. Not really. Not fully."

Linda nodded slowly. If Lucifer had bothered to glance over at her, he would have seen the metaphorical gears turning in her head, thoughts and questions that couldn't be answered right now. Her silence bid him to continue in its own quiet but strong voice.

"My sister though— Kemuel is supposed to have an explanation for me… but I don't think I want to hear it. I don't want some excuse or attempt to make it all seem less than it is. And yet…"

A soft, steady hand gently took one of his own and pulled it away from his head (pulling back a shell of the wall he was hiding behind), and Linda's voice came just as soft and steady as her hand had. "What are you afraid of, Lucifer?"

His other hand shifted, falling to cover his eyes. Linda's hand tightened a little in a comforting squeeze. This wasn't his therapist anymore. No, no – this was Linda, his _friend_. But that didn't matter, did it? Friend or therapist, she just wouldn't understand. Not completely. This was something that transcended mortal affairs. It was divine, a matter for celestials.

He hated this. It was a feeling rooted deeply into his core. He'd always hated that difference between humans and angels. The perspective on the reasoning had changed a bit, especially since his time on Earth, but he still hated how different they were. Lucifer hated it almost as much as he hated the similarity.

But he had found pleasure and joy and _belonging_ here. Something he'd never have been able to enjoy in Heaven and most certainly not in Hell. Such happiness was practically exclusive to Earth, to humans. It was a wonder as to why only a few of them ever truly understood how rare that feeling was.

What was he afraid of? The answer was so simple and yet so elusive. He could hardly acknowledge it himself, let alone say it aloud.

Maybe that was why he had to leave.

— **o~O~o** —

Chloe bit her lip as she stared at the elevator doors. She hadn't seen Lucifer since he'd visited her in the hospital, but he'd promised that she would see him around again. And when he hadn't shown up when she'd been released from the hospital ( _"Just a nasty bit of a fever, nothing to worry about now that you're better."_ ), she had decided that she would to go see him instead of waiting for him to suddenly barge back into her life.

Not that she would have minded. She actually kind of liked his surprises… when said surprises weren't absurd or highly inappropriate anyway.

The elevator announced her arrival to the penthouse with a _ding_ , and she frowned as the doors opened. The rooms were all dark. White sheets of cloth had been draped over the furniture. It felt as if the life had been sucked out of the place. It felt _empty_.

Except it wasn't empty.

"Ah, Ms. Decker, there you are," Zadkiel exclaimed with a relieved expression on his face. He stood up from where he'd been sitting on one of the bar's stools, moving closer to her. "We were waiting for you as we didn't want you to get the wrong impression from the state of Lucifer's things here."

"Wrong impression? You mean he isn't..?"

"Isn't gone?" he finished for her. "No, no. A family matter just came up— rather unexpectedly, mind you. He'll just be away for a little while to sort some things out."

"You should be more worried about the _talk_ you lovebirds are going to have when he gets back."

Chloe's eyes snapped over to Zadkiel's company that had appeared out of nowhere. "Who–?"

"Just another of the family, Ms. Decker," Zadkiel interrupted, claiming Chloe's attention once more. "Though, Azrael will be leaving after this. Some of us do have jobs, you know."

The African-American woman (Chloe hated to assume, but that was her best bet at the moment) gave Chloe a smile – albeit a somewhat strained one, as if she didn't really mean it, which Chloe didn't particularly mind since this was their first meeting. There was another woman – more like _young adult_ – standing a little behind Azrael, who noticed Chloe staring and stared right back.

"Nice to officially meet you. I feel like I've known you since forever ago because _some people_ never stop talking about the lady Lucifer finally got together with. I'm Azrael," she said, holding out a hand, and Chloe numbly reached out her own had to shake it. "Next to me is Leliel, and yes, we're all of the same family."

"One big adoptive family," Zadkiel cut in as soon as Azrael finished.

Chloe was still staring, and it wasn't hard to catch the way the younger woman rolled her eyes. "Wait— so you're all… Just how many of you are there?"

"Considering that it would take well over a day to explain the entirety of our family dynamics, no one answer that," the girl – Leliel – said right as Zadkiel opened his mouth (quite possibly to answer Chloe's question).

And while Chloe didn't get a real answer, she did hear the words "over a day". _What?_ She got the feeling that wasn't even an exaggeration, that it was possibly more like the estimate had been severely rounded down. Just what had she gotten herself into?

"To be fair, at least half of that time would probably be dedicated to the family history," Azrael mused. "And then maybe a third of what's left would go to names and relationships. The rest is just making sure you didn't get anything confused."

Zadkiel frowned and then leveled a subtle glare at Azrael, who shrugged at him. Leliel sighed. "Look, Ms. Decker," she started, hesitating for a split second before continuing, "I don't know if didn't already know this, but our family has some, uh, _issues_."

"Understatement of the millennia," Azrael scoffed under her breath. Then, louder, "Right, come on, Ellie. I've got rounds to do."

Chloe silently watched the two of them walk to the elevator, some kind of private conversation passing between them without a single word being spoken. If it weren't for the age difference, not to mention completely different ethnic appearances, Chloe might have thought they were twins. Then again, all three of Lucifer's siblings had seemed a lot closer than most brothers and sisters.

Maybe it had to do with the family issues Leliel had brought up? Chloe knew that not all families stayed broken after whatever had torn them apart. Sometimes the end result was that the ones who remained got inexplicitly closer.

"Ms. Decker?"

Chloe mentally shook herself, refocusing on the green eyes that (for a moment) felt like they were reading her soul. She blinked, and then the feeling was gone. Zadkiel was giving her this weird look now, like he couldn't figure her out.

As she hadn't replied after the long pause, Zadkiel frowned but continued. "You should know by now that Lucifer can be… difficult, but you shouldn't let that get in the way of what you have with him. Just—" He cut himself off, looking away to the side as if he was debating on whether or not to finish what he'd begun to say.

He then let out a frustrated noise, turning his green gaze back to her. "Look. While some of us don't particularly care about what Lucifer gets up to in Los Angeles, both Kemuel and our father want Lucifer to be happy, and if that happens to be _with you_ , then the rest of us will readily support you.

"Despite what Lucifer says, or even implies, about us, we— our family is very protective of its members because of… because of something that happened between our father and mother. Something that if you _must_ know about, I insist you find your answers through Lucifer," he said quickly, holding up a hand to keep her from interrupting until the end of his speech.

It wasn't quite the shovel talk, but Chloe soon realized it was a plea of acceptance – for Lucifer and for the rest of his family.

"Chloe Decker, no matter what happens, no matter what you learn about our family and our past, about Lucifer…" Zadkiel's voice had changed somehow – a resonance that beckoned her to listen echoing behind his words, grabbing her attention to a point that she couldn't be bothered with anything else. " _Promise me that you will not let that affect how you treat him._ "

There was something about his eyes, the way they seemed to glow in the afternoon light shining through the balcony windows. It wasn't natural. It wasn't human. It reminded her of when she first met Zadkiel in that restaurant, how almost _unreal_ the encounter had been. It reminded her of Lucifer's eyes when he was enraged, of Kemuel's eyes when she exuded an air of trustworthiness.

(Somewhere in the back of her mind, something started to come together. It was a thought, small and straightforward yet complex and confusing. It was the thought that maybe Lucifer was telling the truth and always had been – not just his truth, but something fundamentally correct in every way. Except, perhaps, the most important one.)

Chloe didn't hesitate with her answer, though she did take the time to choose her own words, not the ones that flashed like neon signs in the middle of her thoughts.

"That's not something I can promise," she started slowly. "But I can promise that I love Lucifer for who he is, not what. And if any of this family business hurts him, we are going to have some _issues_."

Zadkiel had quietly, patiently listened to her response. By the end, he had an approving smile ghosting his lips, but he also had this nostalgic look on his face – one that was too sad to be about anything good.

"I'm afraid it's a bit late for that, Ms. Decker."

— **o~O~o** —

"Barachiel! Wait!"

"What could you possibly want right now, Uriel? Can't you see I'm a bit busy assigning the next week's list of missions for the angels stationed on Earth?"

"Add the name Candy Fletcher. She's in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States of America, North America, North-Western Hemisphere—"

"I know where Vegas is… An exotic dancer, huh? And why, exactly, does she need a miracle?"

"Because we interfered with some things, so now she'll need some intervention of her own to stay on her predestined course."

"Right, of course. Anyone else I need to add now that you lot have gone and messed up the natural timeline?"

"… Ask Tzaphkiel."

"Hey! Get back here and answer the question— Uriel!"

— **o~O~o** —

It had taken Lucifer several hours to reach the location specified on the slip of paper Kemuel had discretely given to him on the way out of Chloe's hospital room. The place was rather remote, and he suspected that it would have been difficult (if not impossible) to find without directions. Looking at the paper one last time, he then folded it in half and shoved it back into his pocket.

Lucifer hadn't been necessarily annoyed at the thought that Kemuel had more than likely simply flown here, but seeing her waiting for him, gazing up at the stars and appearing divine even while she looked more human than he'd ever seen her, he couldn't help but feel the slightest twinge of irritation (jealously?) before consciously (almost viciously) squashing the emotion.

They stood in silence for a while, both very aware of the other's presence even if they didn't actively show it. Eventually Lucifer gave in and moved to sit with his back to hers, glancing upwards at the sky she had yet to take her eyes off of. There were a couple clouds that blotted out one or two constellations, but other than that it was a rather clear night.

"There's a book that a human wrote during the 1600s called _Paradise Lost_ ," Kemuel spoke into the silence, taking on a tone that beckoned Lucifer to simply listen. "According to Milton, a third of the angels followed you in your rebellion against Father. According to Milton, a third of us Fell with you into Hell.

"Perhaps that's true for another, different universe, but in this universe of ours, it was just you who spoke out and challenged Father. Zadkiel, Gabriel and I barely managed to keep others from straying— not that you appreciate that, I'm sure. But it was only you who was cast out from Heaven. There have been a few since then that have Fallen, but it has never been because they disobeyed Father.

"Instead, they lost faith in Him. Or rather, their faith was placed elsewhere. Two died because of it, but… well, you greeted the others at Hell's doorstep. They desired things they shouldn't have as an angel, took pleasure in hurting others, reveled in destroying the natural order. The first two, though… They fell in love, each with a human from two completely different eras no less—"

"Yes, yes," Lucifer interrupted abruptly, tired of listening to something he already knew. He wasn't completely ignorant of what had been going on for the past six or so millennia. "And then they died because their humans did, and they couldn't stand living without them. Why are you going on and on about ancient history?"

He felt Kemuel shift behind him, though neither turned to look at each other. She took in a breath and slowly replied, "What is it like to be human? To be completely free of the whims of destiny should you chose to break from it? What is it like to do whatever you please with only the consequences you make for yourself?"

Lucifer frowned. "That's not—"

"True? Wholly correct or accurate? How it works?" she cut him off, filling in his outburst with endings of her own. "And yet neither we angels nor our Father dictate what the humans do. Perhaps there was some influence at the beginning, but it's rather _laissez-faire_ nowadays. Barachiel simply has a list of names for those in need of a miracle or two. What the humans do with those miracles is up to them."

"How pro-free will of you," Lucifer muttered.

"Isn't it?" Kemuel responded with a tone that could have only been said with a bittersweet smile. "Raphael and Amenadiel were rather disapproving until Father intervened. Supposedly, we can do as we like, just as the humans do. But that's not quite true, at least not completely."

Lucifer glanced over his shoulder, only to see the back of her head. "What do you mean?"

"No matter how hard angels can try to deviate from our designations, we will always try to please Him. It is simply in our nature," she told him.

And how _true_ her words were. Lucifer couldn't deny them for what they meant. He'd run for millennia and still he was pulled right back into the middle of things. He'd given Dad the middle finger so many times… and still He managed to wiggle His way back into Lucifer's life.

"Luci?"

"Hmm?"

A hand was gently laid between his shoulder blades. The other slowly slid around his side to rest over his heart. He was embraced from behind in an enrapturing hold. White and lilac wings encircled them, shielding them from the world.

"If you love her, then love her, and let nothing make you think what you feel is wrong."

* * *

 **A/N: There's no way I'm going to be able to make those last two episodes of season three comply in any way to this fic** — **well, I guess I could make a few little details line up… What am I talking about? A** _ **lot**_ **of season three is going out the window because of where I went AU.**

 **Also, if the characters are starting to get a little contradicting to what they've already been portrayed as in this story, you can either put it to character growth/struggling/development or me not being in touch with them as a whole, which is more than likely because I wrote, deleted and rewrote most of this chapter without going back to make sure everything lines up. (I'm still not all that happy with the end scene.) Maybe one day I'll reread this whole story start to finish and edit it all to make sure continuity is right, but today is not that day.**


End file.
